


between you and i (the throths, the tide)

by shishiswordsman



Category: One Piece
Genre: Alliances, Alternate Universe - Arranged Marriage, Alternate Universe - Royalty, Alternate Universe - Still Have Powers, Arranged Marriage, Canon-Typical Violence, Eventual Smut, Getting Together, Luffy Is a Little Shit, M/M, Mistaken Identity, Neck Kissing, Porn With Plot, Porn with Feelings, Smut, Trafalgar Law is a Mess, mentions of Marineford
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-25
Updated: 2019-09-25
Packaged: 2020-10-28 03:10:20
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 20,630
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20771564
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shishiswordsman/pseuds/shishiswordsman
Summary: “You’re to wed the future king of Dawn.”Years worth of planning are washed away with those eight simple words. And Law's never been so out of his depth.





	1. arrangement.

“You’re to wed the future king of Dawn.”

Law stands, stone-faced, as the current king of Flevance seals his fate. 

Doflamingo’s voice is cold, each word calculated and measured. Hearing it makes the hair at the back of Law’s neck raise with trepidation. “Try to contain your excitement, now. You should be rejoicing; marriage is the greatest adventure of all! The wedding will be held in Foosha during the winter solstice festival.”

“That’s in two weeks,” Law says. He draws a sharp breath through his teeth, “The wedding can’t be in two weeks.”

“Nonsense.” Doflamingo waves a hand in the air, brushing off Law’s concern. “That’s plenty of time. “I have responsibilities here,” Law tries to counter, surprised with how unshaken he sounds. He bunches his hands into fists, hard enough that his blunt nails dig into the soft insides of his palms, and waits for the realisation to set in.

“I thought he wasn’t — I assumed the wedding was called off.”

Doflamingo licks his lips, his mouth spreading into a slow, leering smile. If attacking him now wouldn’t mess up plans he’s put into motion years ago, Law would cut the man in half. “Oh, that’s no longer an issue. You should be thanking me, really! At least you’ll get to meet your betrothed before you two tie the knot.” 

All his excuses fall on deaf ears, Doflamingo merely talking over him. Law stares at the roof of the throne room with a blank expression, focusing on the beautiful murals and engravings decorating the panels and pillars. For a moment, he allows himself to pretend that he’s misunderstood the conversation; that any second now Doflamingo will laugh heartily and admit he was joking.

He doesn’t. Of course he doesn’t. Law will leave for Dawn in a day’s time, and he’ll return a married man.

Law scowls, the corners of his eyes tightening. An avalanche of invectives and insults builds on his tongue, burning against the insides of his sealed lips. He’d thought this would never happen, or that at the very least it would be a thing of the future; some faraway affair that he’d have months, or even years, to prepare for.

Offhandedly, as half of him listens to his pathetic excuse of an uncle prattle on about the wedding arrangements that he couldn’t give less of a shit about if he tried, Law wonders how long Doflamingo has known the wedding date, how long he’s known the wedding is no longer called off.

Months, he’d wager.

“You’ll leave for Dawn at, hah,” Doflamingo starts, chuckling. He’s told this joke so many times in the past that Law doesn’t even bother rolling his eyes at it anymore.

His tone is biting, frigid. “At dawn?”

“Yes. Now, I’m sure you have a lot of packing to do,” Doflamingo says, his grin a touch feral. The current king of Flevance stands to his full height, narrowing his eyes. “It’s a shame, though; I know you had a lot of things in store here. It’s too bad they’ll have to be postponed.”

Anger forces every muscle and sinew in Law’s body to tense, and he strains in his spot, his hand yearning to curve around Kikoku’s hilt, to draw the blade and slice everyone in this room into pieces no larger than a hair’s width.

Doflamingo knows. He knows what Law has planned, and this is him shipping him off like an unwanted package. Fuck.

“I will come back,” he says. The words pack a promise; one he knows Doflamingo will recognise.

The King shakes his head. “Of course you will. You’d best get going, Lawsie — your future partner awaits.”

Law’s face twitches at the nickname, but that’s the only thing betraying the chaos that’s enveloped his thoughts. He feels himself nod, his neck moving stiffly, his bones turned to rusted metal.

He doesn’t notice it when his feet start moving, doesn’t hear when Vergo makes a snide comment about his expression. He moves in a haze, his body far beyond his conscious command.

The worst part is he’s known this was coming, though he’s long assumed it wouldn’t. Flevance’s union with Dawn was cemented into history long before Law could even walk, and the monarchs of each nation have waited for almost thirty years to finally complete the alliance with the ties of marriage. Law is to marry the son of King Garp — Monkey D. Dragon.

The man who will inherit Dawn.

He’s not interested in marrying some old, boring man so he can be paraded around as a fucking trophy husband. This is going to mess everything up — all his plans, his efforts to take down Doflamingo without causing a war… _ Everything. _

He comes back to himself when his fingers brush against the door leading to his chambers, the guards posted on each side nodding to him before he enters.

“You look like shit, boss,” is the first thing Law hears, as his guards fall into step behind him. Shachi and Penguin share nervous, concerned looks. While Law returning from Doflamingo’s company pissed off and borderline murderous is a commonplace affair, seeing him like this — shocked, shaken — is new.

“There’s been a hitch in our plan,” Law tells them. “We can’t proceed as intended.”

“Why? We’re only weeks away from the action, man,” Shachi asks, puzzled. “What happened? Doffy take away your allowance or something?”

“Not exactly.” Law sighs.

He dreads telling his crew the news, even though there’s no way for him to keep them out of this. He’ll need them to survive this whole thing with at least some resemblance of sanity left. “The wedding’s happening, after all. We’re leaving in the morning.”

A deep silence follows those words. Then, Shachi snorts out a laugh. “Well, that explains that, then.”

“Explains wha —” Law’s cut off by his guards, both pointing to his sleeping quarters with matching looks of amusement. An inch shy of petrified, Law follows them. When he gets to his bedroom, dimly lit and a bit cluttered as always, he scowls deeply.

On his bed sits a tall painting portraying the royal family of Dawn; faces Law knows well but has never seen in person. There’s a note attached.

_ An early wedding present! I hope you enjoy the journey, my dearest nephew. Married life will surely keep you busy. _

There’s no signature, but Law recognises Doflamingo’s handwriting. With a snarl, he tears the note to pieces while he stares at the painting, faded and worn by time.

It really must be old, because the king of Dawn still has some brown in his now completely grey hair, and his son looks about the same age as Law is now. Currently, Monkey D. Dragon must be older than Law by at least a couple of decades — he’s probably well into his fifties, by now.

Law can just imagine what his future husband must look like: deep-set wrinkles lining the corners of his eyes, framing a grimacing mouth, his skin even drier than his sense of humour. Dragon is a famed and feared military leader, though; known as a ruthless and cold man throughout the seas.

When Law had been younger, he’d assumed he’d simply use his future husband’s army to wage war against Doflamingo, ending his reign. But then the talks of a wedding grew more rare, until they stopped entirely. There have been no talks of a wedding for years, and Law’d thought he’d been forgotten, that the marriage was called off.

Obviously, he’d been wrong. Something has changed, and that something has fucked him over so thoroughly Law doubts he’ll ever walk properly again.

He grinds his teeth, suddenly exhausted. “He mentioned our plans. How did he know?”

“We’ll figure it out,” Shachi says, reassuring. He rests a comforting hand on Law’s shoulder, and Law knows he’s only trying to help, he really does. Still, he brushes the helping hand away. Shachi makes a face, scratches at the back of his neck. “We’ll fix this, Boss.”

“There’s nothing _ to _ fix,” Law snaps. “I’ve spent years making sure this would go on without a hitch, and now he’s shipping me off to Dawn. That’s a five-day journey, Shachi-ya. It’s useless; we’re _ fucked.” _

There’s nothing to say to that, and silence fills the vacuum left by Law’s outburst. He sits there with Shachi and Penguin for a good five minutes, ignoring his guards’ tentative attempts at conversation. Instead, he stares at the canvas with a focused look on his features, thinking, considering, planning, trying to find a way to turn this to his advantage.

Penguin brings a bottle of wine to soothe their sorrows, but Law’s not thirsty. A thought nags at the back of his head, like a thread coming loose on the hem of a shirt. Law pulls at the string until it unravels, twists and tugs at it until it’s all laid out in front of him.

Perhaps, he needs to simply resort to the half-assed plan he’d made as a teenager. Perhaps, he’ll still need to wage war to find peace.

Doflamingo might drive him from his own country just as he stole his birth right, but he can’t keep him from returning. And if he returns with an army, then... A smirk tugs at the corner of Law’s mouth. He’ll find a way to destroy Doflamingo — even if he has to play the part of the househusband to do it.

Law forms the shape of a room with his hand, watches as a sphere of glowing blue appears in the air, enveloping the painting. In a flash, it disintegrates — just like Doflamingo’s crown will, soon.

Wars are such an inconvenience, though.

* * *

On the fourth day of their voyage to Dawn, the ship is attacked.

Law is awake when it happens, sitting in his quarters with some empty bottles of booze, well on his way to drinking himself directly into oblivion. True to their roles as Law’s devoted caretakers and protectors, Shachi and Penguin have passed out hours before, and hardly even stir when the warning call rings.

They do jump up, however, when something rams the side of the ship.

“What the hell?” Penguin cries out, scrambling to his weapons. “Are we being attacked?”

The ship rocks violently from side to side, and Law braces himself against a wall. “What the fuck else could this be?”

This isn’t something simple, like them hitting a sandbar, and it doesn’t sound like a storm – the wind isn’t whistling outside, and the sound of the waves against the hull is a gentle caress instead of the barrage of angry slams it would be, were it the sea trying to sink Law’s ship.

Law can only sense a handful of foreigners on his ship. He doesn’t know who has attacked them, but someone is trying to make sure they never make it to Dawn — not that Law particularly wants to get there, what with the whole arranged marriage and all. But it’s a matter of principle.

The fight ought to be just what he needs to clear his head, anyway — an adrenaline rush, easy and completely harmless. Decapitating assholes always makes him feel better.

They might just be some run-of-the-mill pirates, Law considers as he grabs his sword; some thugs that saw the flag of Flevance and foolishly assumed they’d meet very little resistance. Flevance is a peaceful country, first and foremost, and has mostly remained as such even after Law’s family died and Doflamingo took over. Law’s blood boils at the thought of his piece of shit uncle, and it’s that rage that fuels him as he storms outside, eyes narrowed with purpose. Shachi and Penguin follow him, their own weapons drawn and ready.

The ship is in chaos.

Law can’t see anyone he doesn’t recognise, but he can feel the entire vessel jolting with cannon fire, and he can hear foreign voices carrying from the deck. It’s rather rude, really; normally pirates at least show the common courtesy of announcing their attack before it begins – not that Law himself has really bothered with that whenever he’s ventured into piracy. Sinking Doflamingo’s shipments is a great pastime.

“Go make sure Bepo and the others are okay,” Law orders Shachi and Penguin over his shoulder.

At their nod, Law strides to the deck where he can hear their attackers laughing and shouting. He has little doubt that he can take them on his own – there’s yet to be a swordsman he hasn’t been able to defeat, or a soldier he hasn’t been able to outwit.

The door to the deck is splintered and torn in two, like a tornado has gone straight through it. The hair on the back of Law’s neck stands up. A tiny voice tells him this fight will be unlike others, but he ignores it.

He steps over a large piece of what used to be the doorframe, and squints. It’s raining softly, like the sky is bleeding down in a drizzle. The water gets in Law’s eyes, pushes his hair flat against his temples. Law’s eyebrows draw lower on his face as he shields his eyes with his hand.

There’s a woman on the deck. She has long, orange hair that’s tied into a loose bun, and she’s carrying an odd-looking staff. It must be a mirage, a trick of light, but Law could swear that the drops of rain hit everything but her.

Law takes Kikoku off his shoulder, but doesn’t yet unsheathe it. “You need to get off my ship before I kill you.”

The woman turns to him, her eyes narrowing before a sly smile takes over her features. She sticks her tongue out at Law. “That’s not going to happen. We do accept bribes, though! Give us gold and meat, we’ll leave.”

“Meat?” Law echoes, dumbfounded.

He’s about to say something else, when something catches his eye — the glint of a sword in his peripheral vision, lethal, quick, headed for his neck. He twists, draws his sword in one smooth motion. The clang of metal against metal is ear shattering.

It’s a man with two swords and a scar across his eye, a third blade sheathed at his hip. Idly, as Law parries a new blow with Kikoku’s edge and aims to stab through the man’s ribs, he wonders how the man intends to wield three swords at once. Perhaps he carries a spare?

There’s no time for thought, anymore; the man swipes at Law’s feet with one sword, threatens to skewer him with the other, and then Law can only duck and weave in between the sharp gleaming edges, fear and adrenaline saturating his mind in equal measures.

There are more intruders than he thought, he realises, sensing many more presences arriving on a large ship. The drizzle has cleared a bit, and through it, he can see the silhouette of sails, of a figurehead shaped like a star.

He can’t win this with strength alone, Law decides, and he takes one hand off Kikoku’s hilt just long enough to create a room.

“Shambles.”

Soft hues of blue swallow the deck in their depths, and then Law’s in complete control again, holding the intruders’ lives at his fingertips. He smirks as the man’s swords change place with some seawater, as the woman’s weird weapon twists like a rope around her body, pinning her arms to her sides.

The woman shrieks, a shrill sound. She sounds almost scared. She screams something that sounds like a name, struggling against the metal trapping her.

Law pays her no mind. Instead, he watches with amusement as the green haired man roars with anger, the water in his hands losing its shape, drenching him.

“What the fuck did you do?” the swordsman barks. He lunges at Law, anger in his sole eye. His fingers are only centimetres away from Law’s face, and then… They aren’t, because Law’s in control. He sends the swordsman overboard, hears the man break the surface of the chilling waves with a loud splash, following his swords.

Law smirks. He turns back to the trapped woman, intent on getting some answers.

“So. About you leaving, I –"

“Oh, cool power!” shouts a sudden, unfamiliar voice. Law turns, red in the corner of his eye, a snarl forming on his lips. He hears that same stranger laughing, the sound a chiming peal.

He loses the fight, then.

Something slams into the side of Law’s head, and he crumbles to the ground, his vision bursting into thousands of different pieces. Another strike follows the first one, this aimed at his jaw, and Law tries to swipe at his attacker with his sword. He hears the laughter cut off, traded with a sound of pain, and he knows Kikoku’s blade is tinted with red, now.

“That hurt, bastard,” he hears his attacker mutter, angry.

Then, a fist sinks into Law’s midriff, pushing the air from his lungs like an avalanche tearing trees from soil. Another slams into the corner of his mouth, and the deck is approaching fast, fast, fast — 

Law’s unconscious before he hits the ground.

* * *

When Law wakes up, he’s shackled to a chair with sea stone around his wrists and a cut on his lip. He keeps his eyes closed and focuses on his hearing, because he doesn’t want to give his alertness away to his captors just yet.

He can tell he’s no longer on his own ship. The smells are different, wrong and strange. Instead, he’s in what sounds like a galley, with a group of people who all clatter and clamour with plates and loud words — far too close to Law’s aching ears.

There’s four of them, at least; all of them gathered around a table. Law risks a quick glance, and he recognises the woman from earlier, standing next to the green haired swordsman. They’ve got their backs to Law, the man with his arms crossed, his three swords again at his hip. He’s watching as the woman holds something up while loudly wondering about its worth on the black market. Law strains his neck to see what they're so excited about, and almost bursts into laughter.

It's his quote-unquote dowry to the son of the king: expensive glass sculptures, pieces of jewellery, fine wines, and precious, old books. It's what Law was able to gather in a day's time, most of it pilfered with pirate's precision from Doflamingo's cupboards and private collections. Law won't mind it if these thugs take it all and torch it until nothing remains, even if it will make his arrival to Dawn a bit awkward – showing up to your future spouse's doorstep empty handed doesn't tend to start things off well, not when dealing with royals.

"All of this will sell for at least two hundred thousand beri," the woman claims proudly. She claps her hands together, not unlike a child admiring a new toy. 

Law hears a new voice, next. The speaker sounds young, his words high pitched and innocent. "But this person’s still here. What should we do with them, then?"

Someone hums in thought. "Aa, I don't know; we could just dump him overboard, right? But I want to ask him to join the crew first, though. He had that cool blue ball thing.”

Blue balls? Law bites back a laugh, and instantly regrets it. His head is fucking killing him, a pounding ache tearing through his temples. Whoever the guy who knocked him out was, he got him good.

The owner of the high voice sounds pissed. “No, Luffy! He’s still hurt, we can’t just kill him!”

Law hears that laughter again, then — the same sound he’d heard right before he’d gotten the lights punched out of him. A furrow forms in his brow, and a low curse slips past his lips, escaping his notice. 

Silence falls into the room, and Law kisses the element of surprise goodbye. He can feel people staring at him.

"Oh, you're awake!"

Law grimaces, slowly opening his eyes. For some reason, someone else’s nose is right in front of his. Law rears back, his lips curling around a snarl. “What the fuck?!”

The man staring at him is upside down, hanging from the roof by his ankles. His face is round, and his hair sticks out in every direction. He’s not much to look at. His limbs are wiry and long, although after a moment of eyeing him up and down Law can tell they’re more lean than lanky — packed with muscle. There’s a straw hat hanging by a thread around his neck, and it looks much older than its owner. It suits him, somehow.

“Hey,” the man chirps, breezy. “We should be friends!”

Law scoffs. “I already have friends. Fuck off.”

"Nope. Besides, you don’t look like you do," the man says, the words falling oddly flat — a statement, not an affront. He tilts his head to the side, then, peering at Law intensely. After a moment, Straw Hat nods to himself, as if he’s decided something. “You’re interesting, and you’re strong! I want to be your friend.”

"Luffy! Leave him alone," the red-haired woman from before calls out, her tone tinged with anger. She marches over, pushing the young man aside, and glares at Law. "You! You owe me five hundred thousand beri for destroying my Clima-Tact, and of course there's all the emotional harm you caused. So you owe me at least nine hundred thousand beris."

"You attacked us," Law points out, coldly. "I was defending myself."

“Well, you also had a fortune on your ship.” The woman grins. “I’m sure you can afford to cough up a bit more.”

Law narrows his eyes. “You don’t look like you need my charity, pirate.”

By the look on her face, Law assumes he’s about to be punched again. Instead, the woman rolls her eyes, tension leaving her body with the rushed exhale. “Well, we can still ransom you. Chopper, you can check him out now.”

“Okay, Nami!” It’s the high-pitched voice from earlier. Then, there’s a set of something sharp, small and hard right in Law’s face, something furry and brown filling his peripheral. If the antlers are anything to go off, then it’s a reindeer, Law guesses, but he’s not sure. Could be a weird ass dog, too.

The little creature introduces himself as Chopper, and he asks a ton of questions all the while poking and prodding at his head, where an intense ache continues to make itself known. The kid punched him hard, huh? He doesn’t look that strong.

“You should be okay,” Chopper declares, once he’s done rubbing some ointment on the side of Law’s head. He cleans his hooves in a towel, and smiles. “If the pain gets worse, just let me know! The salve should fix that, though.”

“Thanks,” Law says, not unkindly. His tone sharpens as he addresses the others, because, _ fuck. _ He needs answers. "Where is my crew?"

He can't sense the others anywhere nearby, and he doesn't know if they're okay. There’s a gaping hole of worry in his chest, growing bigger and bigger with every second that passes with him not knowing if Shachi, Penguin and Bepo are alright. It’s a sinkhole.

“I dunno,” it’s the young man who replies, pursing his lips.

“What he means is, we didn’t hurt them,” the woman says. “They should still be on your ship. I’m Nami, by the way. That’s Zoro, over there, and —”

Law looks away. “I really don’t care.”

“Suit yourself. So,” Nami leans closer, rubs her forefinger and thumb together in the universal gesture for cash. “Should we discuss the payment for that doctor’s visit, now?”

Law grimaces, already hating this conversation before it’s even started. “I’d rather you just kill me.”

His tone is a lot more bitter than he actually feels. This is nothing — just a kidnapping; not the first or last time that it’s happening to him. Hell, he almost has a scheduled slot on his calendar for rope play.

Still, concern for his crew eats a hole through his patience. And he snaps.

“Don’t be silly,” Nami chides. “I was just wondering, since you have all those valuables with you. Who are you, exactly?”

“I’m a merchant,” Law lies smoothly, tense. “I was on my way to deliver a shipment to the king of Dawn, to prepare for his son’s wedding.”

Nami doesn’t seem convinced. “A wedding? I haven’t heard about a wedding.” She stomps back over to the table the others had been gathered around, rummaging through Law’s belongings. Eventually, she finds a long slip of parchment from a pouch Law’d carried, and inspects it with care.

Law feels the corners of his mouth tighten, his jaw locking, his entire frame growing tense. Those papers are there as official messages to the king, confirming his identity; they’ll have his name there in big bold letters. There’s no way Nami won’t recognise the Trafalgar family name, not when it used to be on everyone’s lips — you know, _ before _ Doflamingo’s thirst for power robbed Law of his family.

“Trafalgar Law,” Nami says, as Law had guessed. In a flash, her grin turns lethal. “So, you’re a merchant, huh?”

“Yes,” Law mutters, through gritted teeth. “A merchant.”

“Funny.” Nami folds the parchment, puts it away. “Welcome aboard the Thousand Sunny, Trafalgar Law. We’re the Straw Hat Pirates, and you’re being robbed.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's all fun and games until a teenaged gremlin knocks you unconscious and steals your shit
> 
> [tumblr](http://shishiswordsman.tumblr.com/) || [twitter](https://twitter.com/shishiswordsman)


	2. agreement.

The ship is suffocating. Law hates all of it; the atmosphere, the stuffy air, the way the sea stone around his wrists drains his strength and binds his powers — all of it. Most of all, he’s beginning to hate his captors.

Nami’s still grinning at him like she’s the cat who got the canary and feasted on its flesh for days,  _ slowly. _ The straw hatted kid is still ogling at him, as if Law’s an exotic animal he’s never seen before.

In hindsight, Law should probably have guessed that this is how things would go down. Nothing that includes Doflamingo’s plans for him ever ends well. He wouldn’t be surprised if the king hired the Straw Hats to kill him, really.

“Luffy,” Nami says, winking at Law. “This right here is the crown prince of Flevance. We can get a lot of money from him.”

“Torao? So you are a royal?” the kid — Luffy? — asks, unashamedly ignorant. He tilts his head to the side, frowning. “Are you sure he’s a royal? He doesn’t have a crown. Gramps has a crown.”

“Do you?” Nami snaps, somewhat irately.

“Silly Nami, of course I don’t!” Luffy glances at Law, and he grins widely. “He looks too stupid to be a royal, anyway!”

“Oi —”

Nami shakes her head at the teen before turning her piercing gaze to Law, her attention like a knife on his throat. “Okay,  _ Torao _ —"

“My name’s Trafalgar, not whatever the fuck he just said,” Law cuts in, tone sharp. Irritation builds in his bones, festers into sharp edges. Law looks pointedly to his wrists. “If you’re not going to kill me, then let me go. Or is there some other reason for this damn tea party?”

“Our captain thought your power looked cool,” the man with green hair — Zoro — says, shrugging. “So, he figured he’d make you a part of our crew.”

God, how he’d love to tear these people apart, limb from limb.

Law glares back, eyes cold. “I refuse.”

Zoro snorts out a laugh. The look in his sole eye seems indifferent, though Law has the feeling that’s only a fraction of the truth. “Yeah, good luck with that. Luffy, you keep an eye on him — I’m taking a nap.”

He gets up, then, and waits by the door as the doctor — at least Law assumes and hopes that he was treated by a doctor instead of a walking stuffed animal — packs his supplies neatly into a bag and traipses happily over to him. Nami follows, sighing and muttering about debts and idiots.

Law begins thinking of a way out. 

He needs one, soon; the captain of the crew is yet to show his face, and Law’s pretty sure he won’t be too pleased when Law turns down his offer to join his crew. Which, fuck no. He has his own crew to return to, and he has things to do, things to survive for. He can’t destroy Doflamingo if he’s rotting in the bottom of the sea.

“Don’t kill him, Luffy. We need Torao in one piece if we want to get a decent ransom from him,” Nami says, and the young man nods hastily, waving her goodbye like a child. 

He seems simple; easy to trick or even overpower, and definitely easy to slip away from and escape. Law smirks when the door closes behind Nami and the others, sealing them in the dark galley. He won’t let the kid beat him a second time.

"Hi!” Luffy’s grin is blinding. He’s sitting on the table, the jewellery and priceless pottery digging into his bare thighs. “So, wanna join my crew?”

Law stays silent, simply watching his keeper — peculiar as he is. There are scars scattered all over the man’s skin, he notices, catching sight of a large scar peeking from under the kid’s collar, the skin there an angry red. There’s a bandage taped to his bicep, tainted red with fresh blood. With a surge of satisfaction, Law remembers cutting into Luffy with his sword before he fell.

He tests the give of the chains subtly, next, but they won’t budge. “I don’t think cabin boys have any right to decide who joins the crew,” he mentions, the words biting. “Bring your captain to me. Perhaps they’ll be someone with a brain cell.”

“Hey, rude!” Luffy starts, but then stops himself, a look of enlightenment crossing his face. His eyes are round and bright, and they crease at the corners in a way that a part of Law finds kind of attractive. “Oh, wait! I didn’t introduce myself the right way! Crap, Makino taught me how, hold on…”

Law’s brows knit together. He watches as the teen hops down from the table, pushing cups and cabochons to the ground in the process, shattering half of them. Uncaring, the young man bounces over to Law. He holds his hand in the air to shake Law’s for a moment, which is idiotic. He’s in handcuffs, after all.

“Free me first,” Law says, because Luffy seems pretty idiotic, too.

He says it as a joke — meant to mock more than to entreat. Which means Law’s fairly shocked when Luffy shrugs, says, “Sure.”

The agreement is something so easily and lightly given that it takes Law a moment to process it wasn’t sarcasm. He shakes his head. “Are you stupid or something?”

What happens next is both so fast and so improbable that Law blinks, doubting his eyes. Because, either he’s gone crazy, or Luffy simply reaches out — lightning fast, skin coated in black – and his fingers crush the shackles; pierce and break them into a dozen pieces.

Law's never seen anyone destroy  _ sea stone with their bare hands.  _ Mostly because it's supposed to be impossible.

Luffy holds his hand out to him again, but Law refuses to shake it. Disappointed, Luffy rubs the back of his head. “You’re pissed, huh? That makes sense. We did kinda tie you up, but that’s only ‘cus Chopper said you might hurt yourself if you tried to escape.”

Law rubs his sore wrists, glaring at his captor. “Is this how you treat all your friends?”

Luffy shrugs. “Just the ones that try to attack us. Anyway, my name is Luffy, and I’m the captain!”

Law gets up, rolls his shoulders in their sockets, dusts himself off. His split lip stings as he wipes blood from his mouth, and grimace twists his mouth, a wayward curse carrying from his chest to his tongue. In the corner of his eye he spots Kikoku, resting against the wall. Good.

In a flash of blue, the hilt is a heavy weight in his fingers again. Law unsheathes his sword with a deep sense of satisfaction.

“You’re the captain?” he repeats, incredulous.

Luffy nods, grinning. Then, he tilts his head, locks eyes with Law. “What are you gonna do with that, Torao?”

Instead of answering, Law pushes Kikoku’s hilt under Luffy’s chin, the blade sinking into the teen’s skin until red blooms from it. A trail of blood falls down the column of Luffy’s neck, sinking into the crimson of his shirt. His eyes are wide, which Law expected — that’s usually what happens when you threaten to slice someone’s throat — but with what looks more like awe than anxiety.

There’s a blade that’s longer than he is tall digging into the skin over his jugular, and Luffy looks like he truly doesn’t give a shit. Interesting.

“I might kill you with it,” Law says truthfully. “You made a mistake when you uncuffed me. Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t kill you and sink your ship right now.”

“Well, I don’t want you to.” Luffy snickers, but there’s an intensity in his expression as he looks into Law’s eyes, a hardness in his grin. “Besides, it’s not like you could take me anyway.”

It’s almost startling how much challenge there is in those words — it’s a dare with a cherry on top, a promise of a good fight; hot and steamy, with a bloody end. Luffy moves closer to Law, unafraid. The shallow cut on the skin of his throat deepens, more blood flowing and staining his brown, tanned skin.

“Your eyes are a fun colour,” he comments, nonchalant. “I like them.”

Law’s grip on Kikoku grows tighter. “They’re literally grey, asshole.”

“And I’m talking about your eyes, not your ass,” Luffy says, and the cadence of his voice suggests it’s a plain misunderstanding. But there’s a glint in his eye, a mischievousness, and Law finds himself smirking back. He likes that. He could grow to like this annoying kid, too, in a weird way. He’s unpredictable, indecipherable — the aura surrounding him is like that of a hurricane’s; strong and wild.

Luffy’s gaze meets his, and Law quirks a brow.

Kikoku falls from Luffy’s throat.

The boy takes a deep breath, Adam’s apple bobbing as he lets himself relax. The corner of Luffy’s mouth twitches, and Law finds himself staring, captivated by the dimple in Luffy’s cheek, the curve of his jaw. His hair looks tangled but soft, like something Law could spend hours running his fingers through; something that would look like a rat’s nest after a night of intense love making. His top leaves his arms uncovered, and Law’s eyes trail down the sharply defined sinews and veins on the teen’s arms, his wrists.

Luffy looks good. Powerful.

Something stirs within Law, starting in his chest, moving lower. He leans closer, doesn’t dare to break the eye contact, lips parting around a cocky quip. Luffy licks his lips, his mouth puckering, and god, he’s bound to be the worst kisser in the goddamn world — 

Someone pounds their fist on the infirmary’s door, then. “Oi, shitty rubber! It’s the navy! Get the hell out of there!”

Whoever that is, Law is going to kill them.

Luffy blinks, and an abrupt peel of laughter bubbles from his throat, deep and throaty. “Guess we’ll have to cut this short, Torao.”

Law doesn’t bother correcting the nickname this time. He sheathes his sword, shoulders it. His heart still pounds in his chest, and it only gets worse as Luffy reaches over, running his fingertips on the exposed lines of the tattoo on his bicep.

His fingers are soft, which is pretty much the polar opposite to certain parts of Law’s physiology at the moment.

He clears his throat. “Agreed. I’ll get going, then.”

Luffy grins, tearing his eyes from Law’s skin to his face. “Hey, I like you. We’re friends now, no matter what you say.”

Law scowls. “Who died and made you king?”

Luffy shrugs casually, and he’s picking his nose with his pinkie finger as he says, tone as light as ever, “Oh, no one yet, I guess. I’m gonna be the king of pirates, though!”

“That’s ludicrous,” Law mutters, sighing. He shakes his head. “You’re an annoying brat.”

“And you’re kind of a jerk!”

The door to the galley slams open. “Luffy! I swear I’ll shove my shoe down your throat if you don’t get your ass out here!”

“I better go,” Luffy says, only somewhat serious. He winks at Law, then. Faster than Law can react, his hands reach out to grip at Law’s collar, pulling the much taller man down to his level. The next thing Law knows, Luffy’s lips are on his.

It’s not gentle — more a punch to the face than a peck on the mouth — and still it takes Law’s breath away. Luffy kisses him hungrily, his tongue demanding, pushing past Law’s lips, devouring him.

Huh. He’s being kissed. He’s on the way to his own wedding, and yet here he is, being kissed by this strange pirate.

_ Huh. _

As soon as it began, it ends. Law opens his eyes, and Luffy’s gone, leaping out of the door like storm winds through an open window. The last thing he hears of him are Luffy’s battle cries ringing in the air.

He doesn’t know what to think about his kidnappers — about Luffy — so he elects not to think at all. It’s easier that way, because it’s not like he’ll ever meet the Straw Hat pirates again. Much like their lives, their paths are cut from different cloths, and Law’s better off focusing on his wedding and his plans to murder the king of Flevance.

Even still, it’s Luffy’s laughter that fills Law’s thoughts while he stands there, waiting until the sounds of the fight grow loud enough to hurt his ears.

Then, he slips away too.

* * *

Nico Robin is King Garp’s ambassador to other countries. She’s sophisticated, well-read, and polite with a touch of morbid humour and a deadly devil fruit. Somehow, she manages to be interesting even when all she does is talk about politics and history.

Law’s sitting in a lavish library with members of his crew — all perfectly unharmed by their altercation with the Straw Hats, as Nami had promised. The library is stacked with books that are all equally inane, as though someone had gone through it and plucked out any titles that had even the barest chance of intriguing Law. So he stays with Robin, listens to her talk, and waits for the king’s son to return. The king himself is out on a hunting trip, he’s told, though Robin phrases it in a way that leads Law to assume that the king prefers to hunt bandits and pirates rather than deer and rabbits. The king’s son, however… Law hasn’t a clue. It’s fucking infuriating to have to wait like this, like he is unworthy of his betrothed’s time and punctuality.

“Will they be returning soon?” Penguin asks, from the chair next to Law’s. He sounds bored out of his mind.

“Soon, yes,” Robin replies. She’s resting her face against her left palm, that arm bent at the elbow and resting on her right hand.

“How about the crown prince? Prince Dragon, the war leader?” Law asks.  _ The man I am to marry, _ he consequently thinks, not without a note of resignation.

An odd look flits across Robin’s features. A smile tugs at the corner of her mouth. “Yes, of course. The prince should be here any minute now; he went for a fishing trip this morning,” is what she says, though Law thinks it sounds wholly unconvincing.

It’s concerning, not knowing what this woman is thinking, and it sets Law on edge. This might all be a trap, after all. For all he knows, Robin’s about to stab him in cold blood. Poisoning feels more like her brand, though, Law realises, his eyes flicking to his almost empty cup of wine.

He swallows. Shit.

“Any word of Doflamingo?” he asks Penguin, next, his tone lowered.

Penguin shakes his head. “Nope.”

“That’s good. I don’t want that fucker showing up.”

“Yup.” Penguin slumps back in his chair, stretches. He’s been here even longer than Law has.

Eventually Law gives in to boredom, spends the next hour reading some garbage book a huge man with a weird metal nose brings him. The man claimed the book to be the best thing since sliced bread, which, well. Not the best marketing spiel, if you ask Law. The story’s bad, too; some bullshit romance novel about outlaws forming an alliance and getting married — as if that could happen. Law scoffs, rolls his eyes.

“Where the hell is he?” he questions sharply. “My patience wears thin, Nico-ya. If I have to wait much longer, I’m leav —"

He’s interrupted mid-word by the sound of a door opening and closing with a bang. Somewhere further along the corridor that leads to the library, Law hears loud footsteps and even louder cheers.

Robin tilts her head, smiling. “Don’t leave us yet, Torao. I think it’s just about to get exciting.”

_Torao? _A part of Law wonders, _Isn’t that what Straw Hat…_

_ Never mind. _

The doors to the library open, and the voices get louder, closer. Every muscle in Law’s body grows tense, and the chair he was seated on screeches noisily against the floor as he stands. He turns to face his future life partner.

He expects to see Monkey D. Dragon: an aged military leader in all his tall, rugged and rundown glory.

He doesn’t.

Law blinks, and for a moment he wonders if he’s really concussed from one of the kid’s punches. Because this must be a mistake, a fever dream, some other kind of trickery. Because either he’s going insane, or he’s hallucinating. Because, well,  _ what the fuck. _

Because that’s definitely not Monkey D. Dragon.

“Oh, it’s you!” a now familiar voice calls. Law’s mouth opens around a silent expletive.

It’s the kid from the pirate ship. The loud-mouthed asshole who’d insulted Law, made a mangled mess of his name, and laughed at the idea of Law being a royal. The man who’d broken sea stone shackles with his bare hands, and the man who’d kissed Law hard enough to make his split lip open again and bleed.

The man who took his breath away.

“Hi Torao!” Straw Hat Luffy yells, waving his hand in wild arcs.

“I see you’ve already met,” Robin remarks, and she sounds amused. Law looks from Luffy to her and back, and his confusion must show on his face because Robin laughs, her eyes closing with mirth. “Perhaps I should introduce you after all,” she says. Law hates the knowing look on her face.

“Please do,” he mutters under his breath, bitter and resigned.

Robin smiles coyly. “Trafalgar Law, meet your fiancée; heir apparent of King Garp the third, Monkey D. Luffy.”

Oh.

Oh, fuck.

Law gapes at her, and then at Luffy. The young man is bouncing over to them, all uncontrollable energy and puppy eyes. He’s running over. He’s…

He’s the man Law’s supposed to marry. He’s his betrothed, his  _ fiancé. _

Also, you know, an infamous pirate.

No matter how many ways Law phrases it, it doesn’t make sense, doesn’t feel any more real. He shakes his head to clear his thoughts, closes his eyes tight enough that it makes bursts of red explode beneath his eyelids.

When Law opens his eyes, Luffy’s gotten even closer. In fact, the young man is right in front of his face — again, fuck — tilting his head to the side with a look of deep confusion. The straw hat he wears must have fallen from his head when he ran, and now hangs from a string around his neck.

At Law’s attention, a wide smile spreads across Luffy’s face. “Hi!” he greets loudly, pushing the hat back on his head. “I thought you were asleep. He wasn’t asleep, Robin!”

“I see that, Captain,” Robin acknowledges.

Law takes a step back, his eyes narrowing to frame a glare. “Captain?”

Luffy nods. “Yea! Robin’s my archaeologist, or whatever. Archa-something. Anyway, she’s in my crew!”

Being kidnapped by Straw Hat is a coincidence; a stroke of bad luck. Straw Hat also being his fiancé is a set up. Law holds Kikoku in a tight grip, and his voice is not far above a growl as he demands, fierce, “You’re working for Doflamingo, aren’t you? Is this a trap?”

At the tenseness in their own captain’s tone, Penguin and Shachi and Bepo all stand, wary. Law’s mind races. Why would Luffy set him free on his ship just to trap and kill him here? It makes no sense.

Robin gives a small smile. “Luffy?”

“Yea?”

“I think Usopp was looking for you earlier. Maybe you should let Torao get his ducks in a row.”

“Ducks are tasty,” Luffy comments nonchalantly, licking his lips before he bounces off. Law watches him go. There’s one thing he knows for sure: Luffy is, without a shadow of a doubt, an absolute idiot. He’s unquestionably  _ not _ the mastermind behind this façade, whatever it may be.

He shifts his weight, unsure what to think, what to do. He makes no move to lower his blade. He’s been caught off guard once before — not again.

“You seem confused,” Robin remarks, her tone something between gentle and mordant. “I assure you, we mean no harm, and on behalf of my crew I do apologise for earlier. I’m sure you understand, being a pirate yourself.”

“That’s not for you to know,” Law growls, the words clipped.

“Not to worry,” Robin replies, calmly. “Your secret is safe with me. And I hope it goes without saying, but you and your entourage are perfectly safe here. You can lower your weapon, now.”

Law scoffs in disdain, inured to betrayal. “I thought I was marrying the war leader, Dragon. Where is he?”

“As you know, no one’s heard of Dragon for years,” Robin starts, her tone blank, each word carefully selected. “He hasn’t been in contact since before the war. Luffy’s Dragon’s son. Since he became of age a few years ago, the king has decided to allow for him to take his absent father’s place.”

Flummoxed by the new information, Law lowers Kikoku with some reluctance. He sighs, shakes his head. At least Luffy isn’t twice his age.

“Silver linings,” Robin agrees, and it’s only then that Law realises he said that last part out loud. “I can tell Luffy isn’t exactly what you’d prepared for, and I do understand that. He can be a handful.”

“That’s an understatement.”

“Perhaps, you’ll find you like the challenge.” Robin’s eyes have a knowing glint in them. Law’s only known her for a day, but he’s really beginning to like the deviousness of her seemingly kind smile. He has a feeling he could grow to be good friends with this woman, this Nico Robin.

“Torao!” Luffy calls from halfway across the room. Perfect timing. “Come on! We’re gonna start eating!”

Robin chuckles into her hand. “I should go inform Sabo that we’re all set for the feast. You have fun, Torao. I believe this would be a good time for you two to start getting to know each other a little.”

“Goodie,” Law mutters. He turns around, and begins walking away.

“Torao, wait!” There’s a noise, something Law can’t place, then — an elastic sound, a rubbery twang — and suddenly Luffy’s voice calls from much closer. “Torao!”

When Law turns, Luffy’s standing behind him, his knees bent, puffs of dust billowing around his feet. Curious, Law stops, and the younger pirate jogs over, stands in front of Law. Luffy’s a lot shorter than him, Law notes with a hint of satisfaction.

“What?”

“I didn’t know we were gonna get married. Gramps didn’t tell me,” Luffy complains, his shoulders drooping. “Did you know?”

“I thought I was marrying your father,” Law states, flatly. “Do you know where he is?”

Luffy picks his nose with his pinkie. “I dunno. Don’t really care either; I didn’t even know I had a dad until Nami explained it to me a while back. Anyway, I came to get you for dinner! Sanji cooked, and his food is the best!”

Without warning or warrant, Luffy takes Law’s hand, and Law’s face scrunches with ire though he offers no protest. Pretences, priorities, pretexts. His feet feel numb when he’s walked to his seat at the opposite end of the table from Luffy.

His mind is a myriad of thoughts, converging and splitting apart all at once. The revelation that he’s to marry the captain of the Straw Hat pirates, who also happens to be the future king of Dawn, sits heavy on his sternum, pushes against his temples until there’s no room for rational thought.

What follows is a blur. There’s a feast, an incredibly drunk king, and songs and stories performed by a man with a long nose. There’s food and drink and an assortment of fruits Law has never seen before. He has an appetite for none of them.

He’s seated with Penguin and Shachi on his right side and some people from Luffy’s ship on his other. Zoro and Nami talk amicably with Law’s crew, making jokes and bets.

In conclusion, this is a fucking mess.

“What’s on your mind, Torao?” Nami probes once appetizers have been served and taken away, Law’s plate going completely untouched. “You seem a bit, hm —”

“Shaken? Surprised?” Penguin offers, next to her. Law gives him a scalding look.

“Yeah, both.” Nami smirks. “I assume Dickflamingo didn’t really tell you much about the wedding.”

“That’s none of your business,” Law snaps.

“Give it a rest, witch. He’s confused.” Zoro’s voice is toneless but knowing. There are at least five empty tankards in front of him, and two more in each of his hands, which is kind of worrying. Zoro nods to Law, seemingly serious. “You don’t know much about our customs, do you?”

“No, I do not,” Law admits, begrudging. “Though your customs are the least of my concern.”

Nami laughs. Her cheeks are flushed, even as the look in her eyes remains keen and clear. “Aren’t you a charmer. Well, right now we’re having a feast in your honour, and after this we’ll be sending you off to the Great Woods.”

“The Great Woods?” Law repeats, because that just can’t be a real name for a real place.

Nami pats Law on the shoulder. It’s a move that’s probably meant to be understanding, empathetic, but isn’t. “It’s a custom around here. Engaged couples spend three days and three nights under the,” she makes air quotations with her fingers, grinning,  _ “Great Tiger’s _ watchful eyes. It’s an old thing, I don’t think anyone believes in it anymore.”

“So you want me to spend the days stuck here? With  _ him?”  _ The disgust in Law’s tone is only somewhat feigned. He crosses his arms. “What a bullshit tradition.”

Nami takes a long swig of her sake, and she wipes her mouth casually on Zoro’s sleeve. “I know, right? It’s stupid, but since you guys are royals, you have to go through with it — for the whole look of it all, to show you respect the traditions here.” She shrugs. “Not that anyone but some older locals really give a shit.”

Law’s brows lower over his eyes, and he tips his chin, sets his jaw. “I’m not living in the woods for three days.”

“Then you might as well go home. I’m sure Doflamingo misses you,” Nami remarks, lightly. “If it helps, you’ll get to be alone — no one goes there. The whole place is kind of considered off limits for locals, since it’s too dangerous.”

Law raises an eyebrow in disbelief. “That does not sound too peaceful.”

The corner of Zoro’s mouth tugs up into a cocky smirk. “Don’t worry, Trafalgar; you’re in good hands. Those animals are more afraid of Luffy than anything.”

“I’m not worried.” Law scoffs, affronted. “In case you forgot, I’ve defeated both of you before.”

Nami shrugs. “But not Luffy. Besides, you got lucky. Anyway, I’m happy to see that you’ve got some backbone —  y ou’re going to need that with Luffy.”

Law scowls, his grip on Kikoku tightening with ire. “What’s that supposed to mean?” 

“It’s Luffy,” Zoro says, like that explains it. And, well, Law supposes that it sort of does.

He nods, slowly. “I’ll admit, I was expecting to marry someone a bit more —” he trails off, unsure of how to aptly describe what Luffy  _ isn’t. _

Nami laughs. “Smart? Sophisticated? Royal?”

“He sure is something,” Law mutters, his tone approaching something akin to resignation. He doesn’t know if it’s a good thing yet; that Luffy’s none of those things.

Zoro glances to Law sharply, then, oddly silent, and the moment’s ease is shattered as easily as one of their swords could cut through paper. There’s an unreadable look in his eye, and for a few long seconds neither of them says a thing.

Beyond both pirates’ narrowed scope of focus, Nami sighs. “Here we fucking go.”

“Listen,” Zoro starts, oblivious to her complaints, “Luffy’s not the brightest, but he’s reliable, and he protects the people he cares about. You’d be wise not to underestimate my captain, Trafalgar.”

Law holds the eye contact, sees the deep respect and loyalty in the eye of Luffy’s first mate, and he thinks he understands. “I’ll try not to.”

Zoro nods, slowly. It’s hard to get a read on him, to see past the stoicism and laziness in his posture, but Law thinks Zoro is giving him his blessing. Not that he needs — or wants — it.

After the plates have been cleaned — most of them by Luffy, which is a truly disgusting sight to behold — the party moves to a courtyard. It’s large and fancy, with sculptures and rocks and fountains. At the edge of the yard, a forest looms, tall and uninviting, and Law doesn’t need to hear it from Nami to know it’s the Great Tiger’s home.

His soon to be husband is playing some fucked-up version of a tag game with Chopper and the man with curly hair and a long nose. There’s grass on Luffy’s face, branches in his hair, and as Law watches, he laughs so hard he topples over.

_ This _ is the man Law’s meant to vow loyalty to and spend the rest of his life with. This ungraceful idiot.

Kikoku rests against his shoulder, and Law fiddles with the red string tied around the sheath — a distraction from the uneasiness that builds at the back of his mind. The breeze blowing from the mountains tousles his hair, glues it to his forehead with sweat.

Perhaps, if he kills Luffy in his sleep and feeds his corpse to the tiger, no one will ever know.

It’s in the yard that Law meets Sabo, Luffy’s older brother. Sabo looks at least a good few years older, and he acts with far more grace — though the bar is pretty damn low considering it starts with Luffy — and overall just seems a lot more regal than the man who is to actually inherit the crown. Law’s sure there’s a story there, to why Sabo’s not the heir apparent and the man he’s to marry, but this hardly feels like the right time to ask those questions.

They exchange some polite but stiff words, and Law gets the feeling that Sabo is sympathetic to his plight; that he doesn’t envy Law for having to marry Luffy. Sabo tells Law to come to him if he ever needs someone to drink with, and Law finds himself actually making a mental note of the offer. After some more mingling, Sabo leans down, and picks up a rock from the ground. He uses it as a spoon, clinking it against the side of his tankard.

“Yo, listen up shitheads!” A woman in a pink skirt elbows him to the side, and Sabo sputters. “Ouch, fuck, Koala! No need to be so rough. Fine… If I could have everyone’s attention, please?”

Everyone turns their attention to him, and Sabo smiles. He lifts his tankard high in the air, toasting.

“Luffy’s my little brother. He’s very important to me, so now that he’s going to get married, I’m happy to welcome Sir Trafalgar into our family as well. In a week, we’ll converge again to tie them in a binding alliance; a contract of marriage.” Sabo grins wider. “Don’t worry, I’ve already asked the chefs to prepare ten wedding cakes, so everyone should get a slice even after me and Luffy.”

The crowd laughs at that, and Law shakes his head. He looks away from Sabo and the talks of marriage, focusing instead on a patch of thick grass by his feet. He only needs to turn his head the barest amount to see Luffy, because the teen has somehow snuck up on Law without making a single sound. Luffy glances at Law, grins mischievously.

“Sabo likes this boring stuff,” he whispers conspiratorially. “Is Torao excited to go camping with me?”

Ire knits Law’s brows together. “Not especially.”

“That sucks. It’s gonna be super fun,” Luffy says casually. Then, he cups his hands around his mouth, yells, “SABO! I WANNA GO ALREADY!”

Sabo laughs. “Eager as ever, little brother. Alright, you heard the future king! Everyone, let's raise our glasses in a toast for Luffy, and a toast for Torao!” Sabo grins. “May he have an eventful time in the forest.”

The way Sabo winks his way when he lifts his glass and toasts again for their health and happiness makes Law think he’s about to be murdered in that jungle. Or worse.

“Bye, Luffy!” Sabo yells, and the court echo his goodbyes with their own.

“Bye, Sabo! Bye guys!” Luffy yells, cheery. “Come on, Torao! Let’s go!”

It’s the only warning Law gets before his fiancé is grabbing his hand, twisting him around to face the woods. Law tries to pull his hand back, but Luffy’s grip is like iron; unshakeable.

Law glowers at him. “You know I have a sword, right?”

“Yeah, yeah!” Luffy dismisses easily. The patch of grass Law had been staring before at is trampled under Luffy’s sandals. That’s how Law’s dragged into the woods; unceremoniously, without gentleness or grace.

Maybe he’ll get eaten alive by a giant tiger. How exciting.

As he stumbles alongside Luffy to the sacred woods, Law gets the feeling that getting eaten alive may very well be a kinder fate than the one he’s about to face, otherwise. It seems to be a dangerous thing, being target to Luffy’s affections.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

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	3. alliance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> there's smut in this chapter. if you'd like to read it without smut, [click this link](https://docs.google.com/document/d/10CaxVRTo38XTEX5f6SFEiS0iSRhrgB4eDZ96F2s54fc/edit?usp=sharing/). remember to still comment and kudos >:/

The trees are the tallest and thickest Law has ever seen.

The canopy formed by their branches is dense enough that next to no light trickles down through the leaves, and their roots are so pronounced and large that he comes close to stumbling and falling with every other step. Luffy has no such difficulties; he jumps and runs and gambols like a fucking deer, familiar with the woods in a way that makes Law think he’s probably ran around here a lot before, too. Which, yeah — with everything that he knows about Luffy, the thought of him sneaking into a sacred forest to play games isn’t at all surprising.

Luffy hops over a tall tree root, and Law watches his arm stretch up, up, up. The younger pirate grabs onto a branch, swings himself from it to another with a wild whoop. It’s not unlike looking at a monkey, Law notes with a hint of humour. He shoulders Kikoku, tugs his hat on lower on his head, and follows.

The forest is peaceful — calm, save for the sounds of the animals that inhabit it. Law thinks he and Luffy might be the only humans in the forest, and it’s nice, being alone. He keeps a slow pace, just taking in the nature around him, giving his brain a breather. Luffy’s disappeared into the jungle already, though Law can still hear him laughing and yelling and generally making a ruckus, just like he can still see the branches and trees rustling violently up ahead.

He begins humming a tune without noticing; an old children’s rhyme that Lami used to whistle while they dissected frogs. She was always better at that than Law, more patient, more careful, though he’d refuse to dissect the frogs, sometimes. She’d feed and care for them while Law cut slices out of his own frogs. They were different, the two of them.

Out of nowhere, a startling cry breaks the serenity of the trees, snapping Law out of his reverie. A flock of birds spring to flight from a copse of trees up ahead, their croaking indignant, pissed off, and loud as hell.

Luffy’s voice is breathless, loud and urgent. Law can’t make out the words past the cacophony of the birds flying and cawing above him, but it sounds like Luffy’s in trouble.

He sighs. It might not shine a good light on him should his betrothed die a gruesome death on their first night in these sacred woods. Law narrows his eyes, uses his power to teleport himself closer. He goes as fast as he’s able, cuts a piece out of a rock so that he can step over it, and still by the time he reaches his fiancé, far too much time has passed.

Luffy could be —

Well. He’s definitely not dead, Law realises with each step he takes to get closer.

He can Luffy shrieking with laughter somewhere above him, now; the peels of his joy almost hysterical. That’s usually a pretty good indication to diagnose someone with life and not yet dead-ness. Law’s a doctor, he’d know.

With a roll of his eyes, Law shambles himself up, lands on a thick branch. And there Luffy is; curled into a ball with a group of chimpanzees, all of them tickling his sides. Luffy’s giggling, a guttural, completely uncensored sound. He’s holding his stomach, rolling around on the branch precariously. The chimpanzees echo him, as well, as if laughing with him.

Luffy looks up, surprised. “Oh, Torao! You were fast!”

“I thought you were in trouble,” Law snaps. He draws his sword, grinds his teeth. The animals bristle at the signs of his aggression, flashing their bloodied teeth at Law. “You called for help.”

“No, I didn’t. They were just tickling me!” Luffy gets up, still shaking with laughter, thanks the chimpanzees for playing with him, and brushes himself off. He walks to Law, calm. His eyes are dark, confident. His aura puts a gentle pressure on Law’s; a reminder of the power in the teen’s frame.

“It’s okay if you were worried, Torao. But there’s nothing that could give me trouble in this jungle,” he states, without a shred of doubt. He grins, then; claps Law on the shoulder. “But really, you got here so quick! Your power is super cool.”

Law gives no reply, though he can feel his eyes twitching at the corners. “We should find a place to camp,” he suggests, sitting down on the branch. They should consider the pros and cons of simply staying there. The chimpanzees might be less lively bed partners than Luffy, even.

Luffy frowns, cocking his head to the side. “I thought we’d just go to the old cabin? Sabo had it set up and everything.”

Pushing Luffy off the tree would be so easy, right now. “Why didn’t anyone tell _ me _ about this?”

“Dunno.” Luffy whistles. “Sabo totally didn’t tell me to tell you. I didn’t forget.”

Law waits until Luffy’s contently picking bits of tree bark away with his fingernails, and then he gives in, pushes him off the tree. It’s not as satisfying as he’d hoped.

“Fine,” he says, once Luffy’s climbed up, grumbling. He sighs. “It’s getting late, and I’d rather not be out in the open in the jungle after nightfall. Is it far?”

Luffy shrugs one shoulder. There are leaves in his hair. “I dunno, pretty far. But I can get us a ride!”

Before Law can say anything to stop him, Luffy pushes two fingers into each of his cheeks, and he whistles long and loud. He sits down at the edge of the branch, begins swinging his feet over the edge, back and forth, to and fro.

Law sits, too, because if spending time with Luffy has taught him anything at all, it’s that he cannot try to control a damn thing as long as Luffy’s in the equation. So, he props Kikoku on his arm, leans back, and wonders if his crew is enjoying themselves back at the castle. He hopes they’re giving the people there as much trouble as Luffy is giving Law.

“She should be here soon,” Luffy says absently. He’s picking his nose. As Law turns to glance at him, he gets treated to the sight of his fiancé eating his booger, sticking his tongue out at the taste.

He chooses to remove that image from his memory instantly. Law quirks a brow, a wordless question, and Luffy snickers.

“What? We gotta wait! Kitty’s pretty far, I can sense her.”

“Who?”

“Kitty!” Luffy repeats, excited. “Oh, there she is!”

He points to a part of the woods where the trees are rustling, leaves falling. And then, because nothing can be simple, a _ massive fucking tiger _emerges. Of course. Its teeth are almost the size of Law’s forearm, its tail longer than he is tall. It swishes from side to side, and it looks at Law with cold, indifferent eyes.

If this isn’t the Great Tiger, then Law doesn’t know what is.

Law smirks. It’s interesting, from a scientific standpoint — how a creature that large has managed to survive in such a relatively small area, and why it’s chosen to never leave. An autopsy would tell Law so much, but unfortunately he doubts that’d go over well with the people of Dawn. 

Luffy is already swinging over to the huge beast, whooping loudly and enthusiastically. He lands on a branch a bit above the tiger, stands with his arms akimbo. He looks proud, gestures happily for Law to join them. 

“Torao, come say hi!” Luffy chirps, far too casually. “This is Kitty. She’s nice! And super soft!”

“I thought the Tiger was just some make believe god,” Law says. He creates a room, and as he teleports to the ground, a pile of leaves appears on the branch in his place. When he steps closer, the tiger growls at him, bares its teeth.

Luffy punches it in the nose.

“No, be good!” he glares at the tiger, and the beast drops its head, lets out a whine — almost like it’s ashamed. “That’s Torao, kitty. He’s good.”

Luffy’s patting the tiger’s head, like it’s a pet and he is its owner. The tiger nods solemnly. Law’s pretty sure he’s been drugged, that he’s high as a kite right now.

“Hop on!” Luffy calls to him. 

Like a fool, Law allows for himself to be whisked away on a tiger’s back. Luffy pushes close to Law, his breath fanning against the back of Law’s neck. For a moment, Law thinks that Luffy’s going to hug him, and he’s almost disappointed when the teen just reaches over to scratch the tiger’s head. The giant beast purrs, a rumbling in its chest.

The air is crisp and chilly this close to the winter solstice, but still Law sees no snow on the ground. Luffy’s warm where he’s plastered against Law’s back, anyway. It’s a waste of a beautiful starry night, Law thinks, his body jolting softly with the tiger’s body as it moves with each step.

It doesn’t feel real.

Maybe it isn’t. Maybe all of this is a dream, right? Luffy is a _ pirate. _ He kidnapped Law after attacking his ship, split his lip with a punch that knocked him out, and insulted him countless times. He’s not… He’s the _ captain _of the Straw Hats; one of the most dangerous crew on the seas, especially if Law’s own is not counted for.

It’s not what Law was expecting, that’s for sure.

Then again, it’s not like his own piracy has stopped him from being a noble; even if the Heart Pirates’ expeditions on the Polar Tang are more focused on destroying Doflamingo’s reputation and wealth, rather than wreaking havoc and gaining name like the Straw Hats.

He finds himself wondering if this is what Doflamingo thought would happen when he chose Law’s wedding date. Had he known about Dragon, about Luffy? Is this a cog in the machine of his uncle’s plan to get rid of Law, or a wrench thrown into it?

He loses himself in his thoughts completely, the world around him disappearing until only the tiger and Luffy remain. Behind him, Luffy hums a quiet song, completely off tune. His arms are wrapped tightly around Law, and Law finds himself leaning back, into the touch.

“We’re almost here.” Luffy’s voice is lower than Law’s heard it before — almost a murmur, a low thrum, the movement of his lips against Law’s skin more noticeable than the words themselves. The wind blows softly, carrying the smell of rain with it.

Law nods in reply. The tiger steps over a puddle, through some low hanging branches, and Luffy laughs as leaves smack into their faces. Droplets of dew cling to them, and Law’s wipes them from his face with the back of his sleeve. He’s a bit too hasty in doing so, however, because the motion makes his hat fall further off his forehead, pushes it right into one of the branches.

Law curses creatively as he feels the hat get yanked from his head. “Make the tiger stop,” he tells Luffy, doesn’t explain why. If Luffy noticed his hat getting caught in the canopy, then he’s said nothing of it.

Luffy’s face twists in a frown. “Why? Does Torao want to sleep here?”

They’re in the middle of a not-really-a-puddle-not-really-a-lake, so that’d be a no on that one. Law shakes his head, snaps, “No, you idiot. My hat got tangled in the trees.”

“Oh. Use your cool blue ball thing to get it back, then,” Luffy says, shrugging one shoulder — like it’s obvious and Law’s the idiot, here.

“I can’t shamble what I can’t see, Straw Hat-ya.” Law grits his teeth, glances at their ride with narrowed eyes. “Tiger, stop!”

The tiger ignores him. Shocker.

Luffy laughs. Also, shocker. “You should have said so, stupid Torao. I’ll get it for you, don’t worry.”

And then, Law watches as Luffy’s arm stretches until he’s elbow-deep in the thick network of branches, watches as Luffy rummages around, sending squirrels fleeing and leaves flying. Luffy frowns, focused. He mumbles something that sounds like “ew, gross” before retracting his hand from the trees.

He’s holding Law’s hat. And also a frog.

“Oh, it was a frog! I thought it was poop,” Luffy says, laughing a little like that’s the funniest thing. The frog croaks in confusion, and Law feels an odd sense of camaraderie with it — his life has been upheaved by Luffy’s presence, too. 

Luffy puts the frog on the tigers head without ceremony, and turns to Law. “Here, Torao.”

He sets the hat back on Law’s head the wrong way, with the cap at his neck rather than over his eyes, but Law doesn’t twist it around right away. Instead he sits there, on top of that giant tiger, and he waits, staring into Luffy’s eyes. Luffy’s fingers move gently but with certainty as he smooths his palm over the furry hat, getting leaves and dirt and water off it. When he finishes, he cocks his head to the side, his grin a blindingly genuine thing to behold. “There! All better.”

Luffy holds his hand out for a high five, and Law, with his cap on backwards, with a smudge of dirt on the bridge of his nose left there from Luffy’s hands, reaches out to clap his palm against Luffy’s.

“Thanks,” he mutters. A small smile twists the corners of his mouth, lopsided but unironic.

Luffy’s smile widens, if possible. “No problem, Torao.” 

“What devil fruit did you eat?” Law asks, curious.

“The Gomu Gomu no Mi,” Luffy replies easily, painfully casual. He puts a finger into his mouth, curved against the inside of his cheek like a fish hook, and pulls on it until it stretches far, far beyond what normal human skin is capable of. “I’m a rubber human.”

Law narrows his eyes. Interesting. “You can do that with all parts of your body?”

“Yeah,” Luffy says, clearly proud. “It’s cool, right? Sabo thinks it’s not, because he has fire and stuff, and Ace used to say it sucks, too. But I’ve gotten super strong, and I can use it to beat people up really well.”

Having been on the receiving end of those beat ups, all Law can do is nod, slightly unsettled. His future husband is a monster, and the worst part is that that’s far from the _ actual _worst part.

The tiger continues to take large steps, moving through the jungle effortlessly. Animals of all kinds roar as night falls on Dawn, and branches shift and snap around them as the other beasts of the forests awaken. Law should probably feel afraid where he is, sitting on its back, but he doesn’t, because Luffy’s plastered against him. Somehow, Law knows that this is the safest place to be on the whole island.

Not because he’s with the tiger, or even because of his power, his sword. No.

Because he’s with Luffy. Luffy, who saved his hat. Luffy, who has burst knuckles from some fight, a cut on his bicep from Law’s sword. Luffy, who’s holding onto Law so tightly.

A traitorous flush climbs up Law’s neck, settling on his cheeks. Law clears his throat, shakes his head a little. It does nothing to alleviate the thoughts in his mind, the warmth in his chest. The tiger is walking along the side of a small, rocky creek. Its fur is soft under Law’s fingers; long and thick where he grabs onto its neck.

After a few more minutes, they emerge from the thickest parts of the jungle. There’s a small house in the clearing — like something out of a children’s tale. It’s colourful and looks old, with slanted roofs and vines cascading down from the roof like curtains shielding its walls.

Luffy hops down from the tiger’s back before it’s fully stopped, his knees bending with the impact. The tiger tilts its head down so that Law can slide off its back, as well. Luffy pats it on the forehead affectionately.

“Thanks for the ride,” he says. “Go find some dinner for yourself now. The stuff in the house is mine.”

The tiger purrs back, rubbing its enormous head against Luffy’s entire body. It turns around, walking away slowly, and Luffy waves it goodbye until it disappears back into the forest.

Law shoves Luffy’s back with Kikoku’s hilt to get his attention. “So, that was the Great Tiger?”

“Yeah. She’s cool, right?” Luffy steeples his fingers behind his neck, and begins walking towards the house. “C’mon, Torao!”

Law shrugs, and he follows.

The inside of the house is equally as small, but far cleaner and better kept than its exterior. There’s a comfortable looking couch, and wide book shelves stacked so full that some titles threaten to fall out. Law runs his fingers over their gilded backs, noting that about half centre on medicine, science and swordsmanship, while the other half tell bold tales of piracy and battles. Whoever has stocked the house must have done so with Luffy and Law specifically in mind, which explains why Law hadn’t been able to find anything remotely decent to read in the castle’s library, earlier.

There’s a large dining table filled with plates upon plates of food, and a small but cosy kitchen. The pantry is stocked full of meat, rice, and vegetables. It’s a lot of food; mountains’ worth of it, really, and for a fleeting moment Law thinks there must have been a mistake, a miscalculation. They’ll only need three days’ worth.

Off to the side of the large and only room is a large and lavish bed, with a thick mattress and luxurious looking quilts. The bed posts are like pillars, reaching almost to the roof, their dark material a sharp contrast to the light wooden walls. Law searches the rest of the cabin, returning to the bed with a nagging suspicion that he’s expected to share it. There’s only one bed in the entire cabin.

Law glances to where the younger pirate is inspecting the food on the dining table, and he decides to simply sleep on the couch. Or the floor. Hell, he’ll even go back to the chimpanzees if he has to.

Shaking those thoughts from his head, Law turns around, back to the bookshelves, and there Luffy is — sitting at the table with his cheeks already bulging with food. Suddenly, reminded of the way Luffy’d consumed meals back at the castle, Law vigorously hopes there’ll be enough to last the both of them for three days.

“Are you not gonna eat?” Luffy asks.

Law picks a book at random, finds a bottle of wine, and sits down at the table. He casts a glance at Luffy, amused. “The feast we had at the castle was only an hour ago.”

“Yeah, that was a long time ago.” Luffy wipes his mouth to the back of his hand. “What’cha reading?”

Law opens the book, runs his finger down the titles in the table of contents. “It’s a book about the history of medicine in Dawn. Seems like an interesting read.”

Luffy pouts. “One of those boring ones, then.” He sounds disappointed, his lower lip sticking out in a way that some denied part of Law finds adorable.

“Boring, you say.” Law clicks his tongue. “Have you ever been to Flevance, Straw Hat-ya?”

Luffy shoves some spaghetti in his mouth. “Nope.”

Irritation bubbles under Law’s skin, because Luffy’s annoying — so wilfully ignorant. Law exhales, slow and measured, and levels an unimpressed look at his soon to be husband. “Seeing as you will be ruling it with me one day, you should know that we take medical science very seriously.” Law turns a page, returning his eyes on the text. “These skills could save your life one day, too.”

Luffy gets back to eating with a shrug, mumbles something that sounds like ‘I guess’. The silence doesn’t last for long, for soon Luffy starts prattling on and on about something nonsensical. At this point, it’s more of a background noise to Law’s ears.

Luffy talks about Sabo, about their latest sparring match and the fire that had resulted from it; of how he hid bits of lettuce in Zoro’s hair earlier, and how it took him four hours for anyone to notice; of how he spends the days at the castle and on the sea, on his ship with his crew. His ship’s name is the Thousand Sunny, Luffy tells him, beaming with pride.

Law listens with half an ear, more focused on the passion and unbridled affection in Luffy’s tone than the words themselves. There’s a flush on Luffy’s cheeks, food in his mouth, and a shine in his eyes that rivals the sun.

Every now and again, a scrap of food flies at him, some landing on him and some on the book he’s reading.

“As much as I enjoy hearing you blither, I could really do without the whole food shower thing. I’m capable of getting my own meals, if I get hungry.” Law rolls his eyes as Luffy reaches for another leg of meat. “Can’t you eat with your mouth closed?”

“I can.” Luffy hums, taking another bite of an apple. “But I don’t want to.”

Law turns a page, sighs. “Are you even old enough to get married?”

“Uh-huh. I’m nineteen!”

“Then act like it, Straw Hat-ya. I don't want to be deluded into thinking I’m marrying a child.”

“You’re a child!” Luffy snaps, his lips curling into a mock snarl. It’s slightly less imitating than it might normally be, because his cheeks are bulging with the casserole he’d been devouring. “I don’t care about manners and stuff like that, Torao. You shouldn’t either; it only slows things down.”

Law sighs. “Clearly. May I ask you something?”

“Shoot.”

“Your brother is older than you, is he not?”

Luffy swallows, loudly. “Yeah. Sabo’s three years older than me.”

“That’s what I thought,” Law says, tone flat. He takes a sip of his wine, pleased to find it bitter and acrid. “Why isn’t he the heir to the throne, then?”

“Oh, that’s a funny thing.” Luffy burps, patting his chest with his fist. After a moment, he continues. “Sabo’s not related to Gramps, but he’s still my brother. Ace was like that, too,” he explains, taking another huge bite out of the leg of meat. He doesn’t stop to chew and swallow before he speaks, and the words come out muffled; garbled by how full his mouth is. “It doesn’t matter anyway, yanno? But apparently that means I’ll be king.”

Law looks up, meets eyes with Luffy. “Who’s Ace? You mentioned him earlier, too.”

“My big brother,” Luffy tells him. “He died, though.”

He says it so casually — like he’s just commented on the taste of the food instead of the death of a family member — that Law’s taken aback by it, and for a moment he’s at a loss for words. He takes another sip of the wine, waits for Luffy to elaborate.

He doesn’t. The silence lingers over them like a cloud of concentrated awkwardness; the only sounds coming from the forest and Luffy’s locomotive of a mouth.

The war was a terrible thing. Law knows that because he was there; amidst the carnage and destruction, he’d been on the sidelines, treating people he deemed worthy of care. Many people had been on his operating table that day. Young, old, soldier, commoner… It hadn’t mattered. Death doesn’t discriminate.

Law’s eyes fall on the large scar in the centre of Luffy’s chest. Something about it looks familiar, like he’s seen it before. There’d been one patient, back then, a teenager so covered in soot and grime and injuries on top of injuries. Law wonders…

Luffy notices him staring at his chest, and he acts quick, motions stilted and almost robotic as he reaches to his chest, swipes at the marred skin with his palm.

The light mood from earlier has been sullied, tainted with talks of death, of war. This is exactly why Law never wanted to spark a civil war in Flevance — because people get fucked up in wars, and he sure as hell doesn’t want to be one of them.

“I’m sorry,” he says, eventually. “I didn’t know that. I’m sorry for your loss.”

“It’s okay.” Luffy shrugs. “It was a long time ago.”

It was two years ago. Not that long, really. Law finds himself reaching over the table to take Luffy’s hand in his, and it’s a motion his brain doesn’t register before he does it. His fingers brush against Luffy’s, and the younger man looks up. His eyes are creased inquisitively at the corners, and his mouth is curled into a smirk.

“What is it, Torao?” Luffy asks, still chewing the last bits of food.

Law pulls his hand back, looks away. “Nothing.”

Luffy gives Law an odd look, and then burps loudly, patting his full stomach. “Okay. Well, I’m done eating now!” Luffy gets up, walks over to Law, past him. “Wanna do something?”

Law returns to his book. There’s been quite enough mortification for him today, thank you; some peace and quiet will suffice for now. “No,” he says, curtly. “Go find more wild animals to amuse you, if being without constant entertainment is that much of a struggle.”

“Toraoooo,” Luffy whines, flopping dramatically onto the mattress. “This is boring. Let’s play hide and seek!”

“Fuck off. Not happening.” Law’s unimpressed glare has no effect on Luffy, and he groans, rubs the bridge of his nose. “Let me get this straight. You want to play hide and seek?_ With me?” _

Luffy sits up, crossing his legs on the bed and putting his hands on his ankles. He shrugs one shoulder. “I mean, we have three days here. It’ll get super boring if we do nothing!”

Law closes his eyes, sets the book down. “I have no intentions to play games with you. Be bored.”

“But I’ll die if I get bored, for sure!”

“Then perish. I don’t care.”

Luffy grins. “You’re kinda a dick, Torao.”

Law smirks back. “What gave it away?”

“I dunno.” A frown flickers on Luffy’s face, and he hums in thought. “You just seem sad, mostly. I don’t really like it.”

“I didn’t realise you were my therapist, Straw Hat-ya,” Law bites back, with a sarcastic twist in the corner of his smile.

“What’s a thermosist?”

Luffy’s nose scrunches adorably as he frowns, confused. Law doesn’t dignify him with an answer. He returns to his book, but the words are hard to focus on; his mind wanders to Luffy, to the war, to the fucking chimpanzees and tigers and frogs.

It’s stupid, to be so distracted by it all. Perhaps Luffy’s infectious.

“Is there anything left to eat?” Luffy asks, then, as if he hadn’t just eaten enough to feed a village.

“There’s an apple,” Law replies, stiffly. He tosses it at Luffy, who catches it easily.

Luffy eats the entire fruit in one bite, core and all. He swallows, loudly. It should be disgusting, but all Law can see are the apple’s juices sticking to Luffy’s lips. He decides a new dose of alcohol is required to repress these emotions with any efficiency, and pours himself another glass of wine. The drink is soothingly strong on his tongue, burns at the back of his throat. It almost helps to clear his head. _ Almost. _

Luffy rocks himself back and forth on the bed, and he’s just staring at Law. Not talking, not picking his nose, not singing. Just _ staring. _

It’s unnerving, being the focus of his attention. Law’s mind flashes back to that moment on Luffy’s ship — the man’s fingers, coated in black, tearing sea stone to pieces like it was nothing, the muscles in his arm tensing, _ clenching, _ so powerful —

Law blinks, hard. He takes another sip of wine. A _ big _ sip. “Stop ogling at me, Straw Hat-ya. It’s distracting.”

“Maybe I want for you to be distracted,” Luffy says, his tone obnoxiously light. He wiggles his toes. “I’m bored, and you’re being boring. Put the book away, Torao.”

Law tilts his head down to the book, the motion exaggeratedly slow. “You can’t always get what you want.”

“You can if you work for it.”

“Fuck you.” Law looks at Luffy for a moment, squints his eyes a little. He sighs. “Are you going to be like this for the entirety of our marriage?”

“Probably.”

Law concedes defeat. If they play hide and seek, he can always seek and never actually search. “Would you let me be if I played hide and seek with you?”

Luffy shakes his head, purses his lips a little in a small smile. It’s cute, in a way. "Nah.”

"Oh," Law replies. He’s surprised to find he’s a bit disappointed.

He’s not sure what he was hoping for, either, because he sure as hell would rather die than play hide and seek, but the rejection stings nonetheless. A scowl tugs his lips into a cold curve. “Remind me. Was it not you that was begging to do something?”

Luffy laughs. The way his hair is tousled as he shakes his head is downright dirty; as if just begging to be touched. Law kind of wants to kill him.

“You’re stupid, Torao,” Luffy tells him, which, honestly? _ Rich. _Law would glare and curse, but there’s a look in Luffy’s eye that ties his tongue; he’s looking at Law with something serious; something that speaks of things dangerous and untamed. 

And suddenly, Law feels small.

The younger royal’s eyes flick to Law’s mouth and back, and he licks his lips. For a moment, Law thinks that that’s completely coincidental, but there Luffy is, grinning like he knows exactly what he’s just done to Law. Luffy looks at him, his eyes creasing at the corners, his teeth flashing from underneath thin, chapped lips.

"I’m just saying, I’m not in the mood for hide and seek anymore. I want to do something else."

“Like wha —_ Oh.” _Law inhales, exhales, buys himself some time. His brain begins to put two and two together, connecting the dots, and that something that had stirred in his chest before? Well, it’s awoken again by the suggestive look Luffy levels at him, and it comes back stronger.

Law swallows loudly. “Straw Hat-ya. I don’t think that’s wise.”

“Why not?” Luffy shrugs. He shrugs a lot, Law’s starting to notice. “I like you, Torao. And I know you like me, too.”

There’s honesty in those words, something obviously, completely open and raw. Luffy’s eyes flicker down Law’s body, and he’s grinning wider still. He’s having fun, enjoying this, and by the Seas it’s the most infuriating thing Law’s ever witnessed.

Luffy’s attractive, that’s for sure; lithe but muscular, his skin delectably soft. There, sitting on the bed with the sunset painting his brown skin with its splendour, Luffy looks divine, looks powerful. The soft breeze drifting in from the open windows ruffles his bangs, pushes them over his large, round eyes, and Law can’t stay away. Couldn’t, even if he tried.

“So?” Luffy asks, tilting his head to the side.

Law doesn’t have any good counter arguments left. He smirks.

“Yeah,” is all he says. He gets up, the chair screeching its protests against the stone floor. His feet take a stumbling step over to Luffy, and the bed is soft and welcoming underneath him as he sits down.

He takes his place by Luffy’s side, and Luffy leans into him, hums with contentment. When Law relaxes into the bed, the bed post digging into his back as he leans against it, Luffy follows with him, his head resting on Law’s shoulder. The younger royal breathes softly, his mouth twitching with a grin.

“Yeah?” he asks.

“Yeah,” Law repeats, and Luffy fucking _ purrs. _

“Good. You’re strong, Torao. I like that.”

Law doesn’t reply.

Luffy watches him, waits.

Then, he gets tired of waiting.

Luffy’s lips are pushed against his, his teeth a hard press against Law’s mouth; a punishing pressure, like Luffy’s fighting Law even as he’s plastering himself against him. Luffy tastes like sea salt and fruit and the grease from the meat he ate moments ago, and his lips are wet already, like he was licking them before this.

He’s beautiful, Law thinks, in between torrid thoughts revolving around exactly why he’s doing this, and spouts of time where his brain waves are washed away into nonexistence. He’s doing this. He’s only just met Luffy, and he kind of hates him, kind of loves him, and he’s doing this.

Should he?

“Wait,” Law says, pushing him away. There's barely enough space between their faces for their exhales mix with their inhales, and that too feels like too much. Luffy’s eyes are large and round, his nose crooked like it’s been broken before. There’s a small scar under his left nostril that Law’s never noticed before, another by his hairline.

Law forces his focus elsewhere. “Why?” he asks, almost desperately.

“Why what? I want you,” comes Luffy’s reply, simple, straight to the point.

Law’s going to reply. He is, really. But then, Luffy’s lips are on his — _ again — _ and Law’s whole brain kind of short-circuits. Again.

It’s all happening so fast — Luffy’s sudden request, the kiss, the whole entire _ marriage _. Under normal circumstances Law would devote at least three to five business days to wallow and ponder and come up with a good plan, but Luffy offers him no such luxuries.

He doesn’t have enough time to think and calculate, now — in fact, there’s no time _ at all; _ not for anything but kissing Luffy back, to accept the torrent of affection and passion and raw desire that rains down upon him.

A groan tears from Law’s throat, arousal pooling under his skin. He falls into the bed when Luffy pushes him into it, his back hitting the soft cushions, their limbs tangling in the sheets. Luffy straddles Law’s waist; strong thighs holding the older pirate in place with ease. His grin is sunshine, like the sun itself — a promise of pain were Law to get too close.

“You look good like that,” he says. His lips hover over Law’s for a second before presses their mouths together, their teeth clacking together in a way that’s decidedly more painful than sexy. Luffy laughs, and Law kisses him to wipe the smug look from his face, to shut him up.

Luffy’s not a good kisser. He’s got more eagerness than he has skill, but he’s completely unashamed in the way he appreciates every noise Law makes, in how quick he is to run his hands all over Law’s body, touching everything, kissing Law so hard that stars burst to life behind the lids of his eyes.

Law can’t fight it, so he opts not to, embraces the moment — embraces Luffy — and deepens the kiss. Luffy grins into it, and he doesn’t push away from Law. Instead, he pulls him even closer, every inch of his body pressed tight against Law’s, and his hands get more urgent, the grip around Law’s collar almost bruising, fingers digging into his skin, getting under it —

Law can’t stop himself anymore. He pulls Luffy’s hips down, grinding their clothes cocks against one another. He wants this, needs this, yearns for the relief.

His jeans are starting to feel much too tight, and Law loves it, loves the pressure against his dick, the pressure of Luffy’s fingers digging into his back. It grows painful soon, though, and Law breaks the kiss to pull away, reaching down to the buttons of his pants.

Luffy’s hand stops him halfway. He laughs, and it sounds like torture. “Wait, Torao! I’m having fun kissing you.”

“Let’s see if I can persuade you, then.” Law smirks, and he reaches over to cup Luffy’s ass through his jean shorts. The muscle is firm under his fingers, but it gives way as he tightens his grip, making Luffy groan his pleasure.

Law pulls Luffy down to kiss and nip at Luffy’s chest, biting gently at the skin around his nipple, and the sounds Luffy makes are sin itself. The skin on Luffy’s chest is left uneven by the burn scar, and as Law bites onto it right below Luffy’s collar bone, Luffy’s back arches from the bed closer to Law’s mouth. It’s sensitive, though parts of it seem to give Luffy very little stimulation. Nerve damage is a fun thing, like that.

Luffy groans, his breaths punched out of him. A low whine builds in his chest, rumbles in his throat as Law uses his hand to twist his other nipple, using his other hand to still squeeze and knead at Luffy’s ass. His love a punishing, painful thing — something that would ruin lesser men with its force. 

Luffy doesn’t break. He _ thrives. _

It’s like he loves the challenge written in every sound Law makes; relishes riptide, the threat of drowning. His hands tangle in Law’s hair, moving lower to cup his face, then caressing over his neck. Law’s breath is not breath at all, at this point — he’s reduced to pants and moans and groans and _ oh god it’s been a while _.

This time when Law moves to remove his pants, it’s with purpose. Like hell will he be derailed a second time.

Luffy’s breath shudders, shifts into a snicker. “Torao, you’re so hasty!”

“And you’re a brat,” Law comments. Then, he shoves Luffy off the bed. It’s becoming a thing of theirs, Law pushing Luffy off surfaces.

Luffy lands with a soft oomph, but he’s laughing loudly as he gets up. Law uses the moment’s reprieve to open the fly of his pants, dragging them down quickly, his fingers shaking with the urgency that thrums deep in his bones. The second he kicks the last of his clothes off, Luffy tackles him back into the bed, his bare, cool skin just as soft under Law’s touch as he’d hoped.

They tangle in the sheets, Luffy quickly overpowering Law, and Law letting him. Luffy’s holding his head in place so he can kiss Law deeply, with intent, with much more fondness than he has any right to hold for Law after only knowing him for two days. There’s enough give in his grip that if Law really wanted to, he could easily pull away, but he doesn’t.

The heat, the passion, the need — it’s all new, and Law is getting drunk on it, breathing the vapours. Luffy drags him down, and Law follows willingly.

He bites Luffy’s lower lip hard enough to break the skin, and their blood mingles together as Law’s already split lip opens and bleeds, too. The tangy taste of metal on Law’s tongue makes everything feel sharper, more real, and Law moans into the kiss.

Luffy’s hand wraps around his cock, then. There’s no warning or preamble to it, and his touch is rough, unceremonious as it’s honest and earnest. Law groans in pained pleasure, his hips jerking, unsure whether to push closer or pull away. Though it feels good, the touch is too dry, lacking finesse. Law pulls Luffy’s hand away from his dick even as he mourns the loss of it.

“Lube?” he asks, breathless, dreading what they’ll do if this cabin isn’t prepared enough.

But, thank the seas, Luffy nods. He presses his lips on Law’s, and from the corner of his eye, Law sees him stretch his arm, rustling through the night stand’s drawers until he finds a small vial with clear liquid inside. Luffy pulls away, and Law watches him use his teeth to get the cork off. It’s one of the hottest things he’s ever seen.

Luffy’s hand returns to his dick, this time slick with lube, and Law moans, cursing heavily. Luffy’s own cock is a warm weight against his side, his hips grinding against Law’s. Luffy makes these loud, almost growling noises as he holds Law, his teeth brushing the side of Law’s bicep as he pants for air.

His hand, though lubricated, is still clumsy and too rough, and Law pushes him aside. He aligns his cock with Luffy’s — their hips pressed together, their faces against one another’s, their breaths mingling.

Law uses the lube still left on his own dick, and starts gliding his long fingers over both their shafts, focusing on the sensitive spots of skin near the tip. Luffy’s breaths turn to loud moans, and Law lets out a soft, quick chuckle.

“Ah, Torao, I, _ ah,” _ Luffy cries, his hips jolting sloppily with each movement of Law’s hand. He’s so loud. Law twists his thumb on the head of his dick, and Luffy shrieks out a laugh, half in surprise, half in ecstasy.

Luffy’s so unashamed in his passion, so genuinely pleasured and willing to pleasure. It’s intoxicating.

Law fists his hand in Luffy’s hair, digs his teeth into the side of his neck to shut him up. The sound Luffy makes at that is delightful, and so Law does it again, a third time, a fourth. Luffy laughs, the sound higher, more forced as Law sucks and licks at the spot right there, bites into the skin while he jerks both their cocks together.

Law gnashes his molars against the soft skin where Luffy’s neck and shoulder meet, and Luffy fucking keens. Law pulls away, thinking he’s hurt him. He’s expecting to see bruises, maybe even blood, but the skin on Luffy’s neck looks perfectly unharmed. 

Luffy looks disappointed. “Why did you stop? I liked that.”

“It’s nothing,” Law decides. He lowers himself back to Luffy’s throat, breathes in his sweat, the signs of his obvious enjoyment. He looks up, meets Luffy’s eyes. “You’ll tell me if you want to stop, right?”

Luffy snorts. “Do I seem like the kinda guy who does anything he doesn’t want to? Of course I will, Torao. Don’t be stupid.”

To punish him, Law bites onto the skin there again, sucks it lightly into his mouth. When he withdraws with a smirk, Luffy’s giggling, and his neck still looks perfectly unharmed. Law runs his hand over the exposed column of Luffy’s throat, feels the definition of his trachea, the arteries and jugular hidden beneath layers of muscle. Right there, within his reach, Luffy’s blood circulates, proof of his beating heart that works so hard to keep him alive. Mesmerised, Law drags his nails down where he knows Luffy’s sternocleidomastoid muscle lies. To his surprise Luffy’s head follows his touch, twisting in an angle no human ever should be able to reach. It looks like he’s broken his neck.

“Stop that,” Law says, though a part of him finds the long stretch of Luffy’s neck somewhat captivating to look at. He spreads his hand over Luffy’s neck, not putting pressure or grabbing, but simply resting his hand there. He can feel Luffy’s gasping breath through his skin, there. “You’re so fucking weird.”

“Says the guy with blue ball powers.” Luffy leans into the touch, snickering. “I’m fine. A rubber man, remember.”

Law’s about to say something more, something sarcastic about friction and balloons, but Luffy grinds against him then, pants against his ear, and he forgets.Luffy kisses him, but his coordination’s off, and Law ends up with a slobbering kisses to his cheek, his chin, his nose.

A droplet of sweat rolls down the line of Luffy’s jaw, down to his throat. Law licks it away, worries the skin. He could spend hours like this.

“You’re so, ah,” Luffy groans, laughs. His eyes flit down to Law, amused. “Do you think the tiger can hear us fucking? Or the monkeys?”

If Law’s mouth wasn’t otherwise occupied, it would be either laughing or perhaps telling Luffy off. Instead, he makes Luffy groan and moan and make sounds that don’t sound human, and that feels like revenge enough; a point made.

“Get a fucking grip, Straw Hat-ya,” he says, finally pulling away from Luffy’s neck. He can feel Luffy’s pulse through his chest, his heart hammering in his ribcage. Law’s own heart is much the same.

Luffy’s laugh is breathless, a challenge hidden in its sibilant ring. He nods, eager. “Okay.”

Then, he flips Law around, manhandles him like a toy, and Law goes easily. Like a twig in a current, he floats, lets Luffy gather him on top of his own, shorter body. Their dicks are pressed together again, and Law’s head is in the crook of Luffy’s neck. He inhales deeply, smelling the sweat and feeling the saliva he’s left on the column of Luffy’s throat.

Luffy’s petting him, now. He’s pressing lazy kisses to the side of Law’s head while his hands run up and down Law’s body, taking in every inch of him — squeezing, pressing, tugging, gripping. It goes on forever, and Law might be a patient man, but he’s no saint. He growls at Luffy to get a move on.

Luffy shakes his head, seems to come back to himself. “Sorry,” he says, sheepish. “I like your tattoos.”

“Whatever,” Law mutters, angrily. He grinds down, his cock rubbing against Luffy’s, and Luffy chokes on his breath. “This is going on too long, Straw Hat-ya. Fuck, I’m dying.”

Luffy laughs, loud and free. He pets Law’s hair one more time, and then his hands trail down — his shoulders, his ribs, his lower back, touching every dip of his spine all the way to the curve of his ass. When he gets down there, Luffy hums appreciatively, and he squeezes Law’s cheeks, spreads them open. Law feels downright filthy on display like that, but somehow it makes the heat in his belly grow stronger, his cock get harder.

Then, there’s a lubed finger at his entrance, pushing in gently. First, just to the first knuckle, and Law groans, clenching around it, inviting —

Luffy pushes his forefinger in all the way, kissing the top of Law’s head gently as he does. He’s going too slow, too vanilla. And, fuck, Law’s been hard for what feels like hours now, so if Luffy doesn’t get a fucking move on he will have to take matters into his own hands.

The options are limitless; fucking Luffy into the mattress, riding him into oblivion; going down on Luffy, having Luffy go down on him…

Law moans into Luffy’s throat. Fuck this. He reaches underneath himself, jerking off with rushed movements. He’s not going to last long, not at this rate. Not with thoughts like this.

Luffy grins. “Are you in a rush, Torao?”

Law groans, anger turning the sound into a nigh growl. He would kill Luffy if he could spare a free hand to do so. “Stop stalling, Straw Hat-ya. Unless you want me to find someone else?”

Luffy’s breath hitches, and his finger stills inside Law. When he talks, he sounds angry, weirdly possessive. Petulant, almost. “No.”

“What?” Law grunts.

Luffy’s voice is low. “Don’t even think about that. Don’t think about anyone else.”

He drives his point home by twisting the finger, pushing it further until it’s brushing against Law’s prostate. The pressure makes bliss shoot up Law’s spine, and when he moans, Luffy smiles widely.

“Torao’s so pretty.”

“Luffy-ya,” Law pants, his mouth opening with a groan of mindless pleasure. Luffy’s fingers work him open without mercy, one turning to two turning to three, and Law’s eyes roll to the back of his head. It’s a painful pleasure, and Law’s not sure whether to push Luffy away or pull him closer.

It’s all so sudden, too sudden for his brain to properly process, and that’s how he’s ended up there; with Monkey D. Luffy’s tongue licking into his mouth, his fingers pushing inside him.

Luffy’s becoming restless, his hips jerking faster and faster against Law’s — impatient. The fingers of his other hand dig into Law’s back, trail down his spine to his ass, squeeze his cheeks strong enough that it’ll probably bruise, blunt nails leaving trails of raised skin at their wake. Law can’t help but groan into his mouth, the noise low and wanting.

The friction, the heat, the touch, it’s so good —

Then, without warning, it stops.

Shit. Fuck. _ What the hell. _

Out of nowhere, Luffy pushes him away, and Law turns his head around, worried that Luffy has changed his mind. If he stops things here, now that Law’s dick is achingly hard and it feels like his blood is _ boiling, _well — he’s definitely going to paint this cabin with his blood and intestines.

Luffy holds still, flips Law around on his back. He looks into Law’s eyes, serious despite the flush on his cheeks, the sweat on his skin. “Tell me if you want to stop, and I will,” he says, and it’s a promise. Law can tell.

“We already had this conversation.” Law rolls his eyes. “Yes, whatever. Are you going to fuck me or what?” he snarls, low in his throat.

“Torao —”

Law bares his teeth. “Come on, _ prince. _ Show me what you can do before I die of old age.”

Luffy laughs, and oh, his fingers grip Law’s thighs, spreading them, his smaller body pushing in between Law’s legs. And there it is — the press of his cock against Law’s entrance. Fucking finally.

Law hears Luffy draw a deep breath, and his grip on Law’s hip tightens. Then, there’s a wonderful pressure, and Law arcs his back into the mattress as Luffy presses inside of him, filling him completely, and Law inhales through his nose. His heart tries to beat its way out of his chest, his pulse a thunder in his ears.

Luffy presses into him without mercy — doesn’t stall, doesn’t pause. Law breathes hard, and he endures.

As soon as he’s bottomed out, Luffy pulls immediately out again, sets a gruelling pace. He’s laughing, a breathy, almost erratic sound. His hips piston against Law’s with a madman’s strength, and moans fall out of Law’s mouth with each thrust. He digs his fingers into Luffy’s hips, tries to meet Luffy’s thrusts with his own.

By the seas, it’s so good. It’s heaven and hell and purgatory all wrapped in one, and Law feels like he could die from it. And yet, it’s not enough.

“Luffy-ya,” Law pants.

Luffy’s not hitting the right spot, and though it’s hot enough to punch his breath away, it’s. Just. Not. Enough. The sensations are close enough to perfect that it keeps the passion and the pressure thrumming under his skin, electricity forking in his veins. It keeps his cock achingly hard, but Law knows he needs more to come like this. He reaches in between their bodies, barely grasping at his cock. It’s not enough, he can’t reach.

“It’s not —” he starts, cut off by a need for air. “It’s not enough,” he gripes, refusing to acknowledge how close his voice gets to a plea. “I need to come, asshole.”

Luffy’s laugh is no longer loud and rambunctious — it’s a quiet huff, a fervent sound, something intimate, completely unguarded. He reaches between them, his arm stretching grotesquely, and pulls Law’s hand away from his crotch. Law curses, claws at Luffy with his nails.

He needs to come, damnit.

Luffy smiles. “Don’t worry, Torao. I got you.”

Luffy adjusts them again, pulling out of Law for a few seconds so he can push himself off the bed, standing beside it instead. He pulls Law to the edge of the mattress, drags him by his ankles, and Law can tell by the hungry look in Luffy’s eye that if he didn’t earn bruises before, then he’s about to get some now. And he’s going to have trouble sitting down in the morning.

Luffy lifts his hips off the bed, aligns himself. When he pushes back inside him, the new angle makes him hit Law’s prostate with each thrust. Law pushes his head back, crying out. He can see stars, he swears, and when Luffy wraps a hand around him, jerks him off frantically, Law can see galaxies exploding behind his eyelids. He can feel himself getting buried under the waves of passion, the unyielding heat that Luffy exudes.

If there was a direct line between his crotch and his brain, then Luffy would be using it as fuse right now — the flame crawling slowly up the wire, waiting to set Law’s mind ablaze. It feels like that.

“Ah, Torao. Fuck, ah,” Luffy groans into his mouth, his thrusts falling out of rhythm. To shut him up, Law pulls him down, reaches up to meet Luffy’s lips with his own. He kisses Luffy deeply, open mouthed, panting against each other’s lips. Law’s fingers dig into Luffy’s hair, tugging, clinging on for dear life.

He’s not going to last long, neither of them will; too keyed up from the onslaught of pleasure. Law presses his teeth into Luffy’s skin to muffle his cries, doesn’t stop until he can taste the metallic tang of blood.

Luffy lets out a keening cry, but it’s not one of pain. His hands are holding onto Law’s body so tightly that it’s sure to bruise, sure to break skin. Law can’t think of a better way to tell the word that Luffy’s staked his claim, because that’s what it feels like.

Luffy’s a pirate, and Law’s being pillaged. 

“Oh, shit,” Luffy is whining, biting down on his lip. “Shit, fuck, Torao — I’m not gonna last. You feel so good, _ fuck —” _

“Come on,” Law replies, breathless. “Get me off, fuck me, oh my g_ oh —” _

Luffy thrusts into him, deeply, hard, and he hits Law’s sweet spot just right, twists his fingers around Law’s cock just right, leans down to kiss him _ just right, _ and it’s perfect.

The pleasure mounts, overcomes Law’s capacity for thought.

_ Fuck. _

His mind whites out as he comes, a gasping cry escaping his lips. He spills all over Luffy’s hand and both their stomachs, and Luffy moans nonsense as he chases his own orgasm. His thrusts get wild, like he’s a storm trapped in a human vessel; desperate and rough while he rides Law through his climax. Law’s muscles clench and unclench, waves rushing over rocks on a shore. Luffy groans, his eyes falling shut.

Luffy laughs wildly as his own pleasure cruxes, reaches its boiling point, and then he’s coming inside Law. His grip on Law is so strong, so demanding, that Law’s surprised he’s not breaking any bones.

Spent, the younger pirate falls on Law, still laughing, his hips jerking the last of his release into Law’s body. He’s sweaty, his hair glued to his forehead with sweat, and Law can taste salt when Luffy starts pressing endless kisses to the vicinity of his mouth. His dick is still inside Law, soft, spent.

“God,” Law whispers.

Luffy grins tiredly against Law’s shoulder. “That was so good, Torao. You felt so good.”

“You were hardly unsatisfactory, too.” Law smiles lopsidedly, lazily. Luffy’s weight is comforting on him, but they’re both sticky and covered in fluids, and it’s getting too hot for cuddling — temperature-wise.

And so, the aftermath of their lovemaking finds them like this; Luffy, collapsed on top of Law, his cock gone soft but still inside of his newfound lover. He kisses Law, his mouth open and wet, uncoordinated, and Law kisses back. He’s dazed, still enjoying the aftershocks of his slowly fading orgasm.

If nothing else, the sex was good.

Luffy presses lazy, sloppy kisses to Law’s mouth, his dick twitching inside him with tired interest. “I like you,” he whispers, like it’s some secret. “I like you a lot.”

Law rolls his eyes, and Luffy giggles. His hips jerk with how hard he laughs, and Law groans, his muscles involuntarily squeezing down on Luffy’s soft cock. He feels sticky, disgusting, unsanitary.

With a weary groan, Law summons a room with the last of his strength, uses his power to clean them both up. As an afterthought, he shambles a wine glass and the bottle he’d opened earlier to their bedside, too. Luffy coos appreciatively at the blue hue of his power, the blue hues reflecting in his wide eyes. He makes a soft noise of disappointment when Law lets go of the room, and Law kisses him in apology. They’ll have plenty of chances to explore his powers, later.

Luffy runs his fingers down the sides of Law’s face, walks them up the bridge of his nose before sinking them into Law’s hair. Law draws in a deep, heavy breath, muscles relaxing as Luffy pets his hair in slow, clumsy motions.

“Your hair is soft,” Luffy murmurs, fondly.

Something in Law unravels when he hears those words, like yarn unspooling. It’s scary, the feeling those words give him, really. Because, for that fleeting moment, Law feels at home in this foreign land. He feels safe. His inhale shudders, and his exhale carries a note of melancholy with it. It’s been a while for that, too.

On top of him, Luffy tenses, attentive. “Torao?”

“Whuh?” Law replies, eloquently. “I’m okay, Straw Hat-ya.”

Luffy’s quiet, his brows furrowed. When he speaks, his voice is earnest, his eyes full of honest confusion. “Did Torao not want to do this?”

He sounds so sincere. Luffy actually cares, Law realises, and there they are again. Those treacherous feelings. Law closes his eyes, snaps his mouth shut to keep from replying before he’s had time to think.

He’s just had sex with a veritable stranger — a man he has only known for a few days, but who still seems to know Law better than most. He’s also the person Law’s meant to marry in a week. It sounds crazy. Even worse, it sounds reckless, thoughtless, completely unreasoned.

But, the sheets are soft against his bare skin, which thrums with sated static — a warm current floods his brain and his veins, leaves Law feeling weightless and alive.

He doesn’t regret this.

He gets lost in his thoughts, so much so that when he feels Luffy pull away from him, his dick slipping out of his body, Law is almost startled by it. Luffy sits up, legs crossed, hands on his ankles. He’s frowning at Law.

“Torao.” Luffy repeats, sterner. Law forces his eyes to focus on him. “Are you sad we had sex?”

And no, Law’s heart tells him, no he’s not. It was good, and he likes Luffy — likes how earnest he is, how honest, likes the way being with Luffy makes him feel.

Law shakes his head, “No. I don’t think I am.”

Luffy smiles. “Good! I don’t regret it either!”

He flops back on top of Law again, accidentally elbowing him in the ribs hard enough to push the air from Law’s lungs. Law gathers his breath, and aims a half-hearted glare at his fiancé.

“I should have just killed you at your ship,” he mutters, though there’s no bite to the words.

Luffy laughs freely, finding the promise of death funnier than it should be. Law shakes his head, rolls his eyes hard enough that it almost hurts. Luffy kisses him, then — his hand a gentle caress against the back of Law’s neck, the polar opposite to the passionate grip it had been mere moments ago. Law kisses back, drinking in Luffy’s affection.

“Is Torao comfy?” Luffy asks, and he’s tugging the sheets up, tucking them assiduously around Law’s body. It’s getting cold outside, and the sweat on Law’s skin had begun to dry and cool, though he’d hardly noticed. Luffy’s body presses against him, and if Law’s an ice cube, Luffy’s a furnace. Or a match.

Luffy kisses his nose. “I want you to be comfy.”

Law frowns at him. “So you first punch me, then fuck me, and then swaddle me like a child? Pick one, Straw Hat-ya. Or, define comfortable.”

“Comfy is when you feel safe and nice,” Luffy states, matter-of-factly. “Do you feel safe and nice?”

He does. He really does.

“I —” He starts, but Luffy laughs and cuts him off with a kiss. Law rolls his eyes. “As I was saying, I—”

Interrupted again. Kissed again.

“Fucking —”

Kiss, on the lips.

“Hate —”

Kiss.

Try as he might, Law’s scowl slowly melts into a small smile. He sighs, cups the side of Luffy’s face in a gesture he hopes to be gentle before he says. “You. I fucking hate you.”

Luffy laughs, and he kisses the tip of Law’s nose, both his ears, and under his jaw. He’s holding onto Law so tenderly, like he’s something precious, something dear. It makes him feel treasured, cherished, and it’s one hell of a cognitive dissonance to feel that way in Luffy’s arms, and then remember that only a day or so ago, Luffy’d punched him in the face and kidnapped him. Insulted him, stolen his stuff, threatened him —

_ — protected him, hugged him, showed kindness to him — _

It’ll make for a great story to tell at their wedding, Law concludes.

“Torao,” Luffy says, quietly. He cups the side of Law’s face with his palm, strokes his thumb back and forth across his cheek bone. “You’re pretty.”

“You keep saying that.”

“Yeah! Because it’s true.”

Law tilts his head to the side, presses his lips to the inside of Luffy’s wrist. It makes his soon to be husband laugh, and incurs yet another swarm of wet pecks all around Law’s face. When they part, Luffy blinks sleepily, cutely. Law has to look away, because something shifts in his chest, something warm and fond.

There’s no way he’s actually falling for this idiot, right? Just like there’s no way Luffy’ll fall for him.

Right.

A doubt forms in the back of his mind, and Law’s mouth processes the thought faster than his brain does. “Do you want to actually marry me, Straw Hat-ya?”

Luffy shrugs one shoulder. “I dunno. I like you, and you’re strong. So why not?”

“Why not?” Law’s brows knit together. “There’s more to it than thinking I’m strong. Do you think you’ll be happy if we’re married? You’re young, and there are others, and I’m —”

Luffy slaps a hand over Law’s mouth to quiet him, his eyes narrowing. “Shut up,” he says, a sharpness returning to his tone. “You’re thinking too much, Torao. We can always just be friends, if it doesn’t work out. Gramps wouldn’t mind.”

Law narrows his eyes with ire, and he pushes Luffy’s hand away. “It’s not that simple.”

Luffy grins. “Whatever. I say it is, so it is.”

He says it with such finality that Law finds himself incapable of persisting the topic. He closes his eyes, instead, rubs his forefinger and thumb against his closed lids. Perhaps, it is that simple.

Luffy’s voice breaks the fragile silence. “Hey, do you think I could wear a dress at the wedding?”

“You’d ruin it.” Law snorts, incredulous. “You’d have to behave with a dress. No pulling it up to your ears.”

“You wish,” Luffy says, teasing. He sounds drowsy, like he’s moments away from sleep. “Not like you’d complain.”

He yawns, and Law pulls him closer, Luffy’s strong arms wrapping around him like a sloth clings to a tree. His narrow shoulders slot so well in the crook of his arm, and his breath is such a nice, warm caress against the side of Law’s neck, and —

Law thinks about other things, planting himself firmly in Column D for Denial.

Luffy’s breathing has evened out, grown softer. He mumbles something that Law can’t quite make out, and Law’s heart swells, soars. Watching the open expression on Luffy’s face helps silence the doubts in his mind.

He pulls the blanket over Luffy better, so that it covers him entirely.

What Luffy’d said stays with him, clamours for his attention. The thought that they could take things slow, be friends and then maybe something more, in time… It’s tempting in how simple it sounds. And, the thing is, Luffy’s strong. Allying with him wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world. He’s got a crew of equally capable people, and he’s clearly got a will that can cut through stone. Law could have a use for someone like him outside of the bedroom, too.

He can’t imagine he’d laugh this much if he was stuck in this cabin with Luffy’s father, after all.

It’s ironic, in a way; the marriage was Doflamingo’s way of shipping him off far enough that he can’t do a thing against the corrupt king, and now it might be his greatest asset. Maybe this marriage thing isn’t going to be a complete disaster, after all.

“Did you know — Well, I assume you don’t,” Law starts, lazily twirling Luffy’s bangs in between his fingers. He sighs quietly. “In some languages, marriage is simply another word for an alliance. Perhaps, ours can be like that, too.”

A loud snore is his only answer. Law snorts out a laugh. His partner — in crime and otherwise — is far from what he’d expected, but that’s okay. It’s better than what he’d hoped.

Law cards his fingers through Luffy’s hair, presses a kiss to the side of his nose.

Doflamingo will never see them coming.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> that was that! i've been working on this fic for a while together with Jali-Jali, who's created illustrations for it. you can find more info on that in the posts i'll make on twit and tumblr. i hope you enjoyed it! i've had a blast writing it. huge thanks to [may](https://archiveofourown.org/users/m_rosenkov/works/) for betaing!
> 
> [tumblr](http://shishiswordsman.tumblr.com/) || [twitter](https://twitter.com/shishiswordsman)


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